The Sword of Fierbois: Standard Weaponry or Authoritative Symbol?

 In today's discussion we briefly touched on the subject of Joan's sword that was recovered from the church of Saint-Catherine of Fierbois. I wanted to explore this idea of a sword that Joan was told about from her voices a little further. Upon some research I discovered that Saint Catherine, the woman who the church is named after, was the patron saint of soldiers ( Jeanne d'Arc, 1). Is it any coincidence that Joan found this sword, before going to the raise the siege of Orleans, at a church whose patron saint was over soldiers?
  Furthermore, the sword was not found in immaculate condition. Instead it was buried behind the alter and was rusted (Pernoud, 61). But the rust was easily removed and given to Joan. The only description available about the sword is it had five crosses on it (Saint-Joan-of-Arc, 1). Do you think there is a significance to the number of crosses present on the sword?
  Today when we think of someone using a sword, especially on their way to battle, we think of dueling on the battlefield to a fight to the death but Joan did no such thing. According to the webpage "The Sword of Ste. Catherine de Fierbois", a companion of Joan's on the way to Orleans said, "I wanted to sharpen that old blade, but she said it was not necessary, as she should never kill anybody, and should carry it only as a symbol of authority" (1). Does this surprise anyone that her sword's "function" was a symbol of authority versus a weapon?
  Below is an image of Joan using the sword to chase away prostitutes from the encampment. Notice that the sword is not depicted as being elaborate in any way. Do you think this has a connection to the fact that Joan was often "humble" in her appearance?

Works Cited
Pernoud, Regine. Joan of Arch: By Herself and Her Witnesses. MD: Scarborough House, 1994.
"The Sword of Ste. Catherine de Fierbois."http://www.jeanne-darc.info/p_jeanne/sword.html.
"Her Sword." 1999.http://saint-joan-of-arc.com/sword.htm.
Image from "The Sword of Ste. Catherine de Fierbois."