Four Roman swords discovered in Dead Sea cave in Israel

The four Roman-era swords and a javelin head were found during a recent excavation (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP)

Four Roman-era swords, their wooden and leather hilts and scabbards and steel blades exquisitely preserved after 1,900 years in a desert cave, surfaced in a recent excavation by Israeli archaeologists near the Dead Sea, officials announced.

The cache of exceptionally intact artefacts was found about two months ago and tells a story of empire and rebellion, of long-distance conquest and local insurrection, the Israel Antiquities Authority said.