In Beowulf, Grendel's skin is protected from being pierced by the Danes' swords. I'll quote the lines from Burton Raffel's translation:
...All of Beowulf's
Band had jumped from their beds, ancestral
Swords raised and ready, determined
To protect their prince if they could. Their courage
Was great but all wasted: they could hack at Grendel
From every side, trying to open
A path for his evil soul, but their points
Could not hurt him, the sharpest and hardest iron
Could not scratch at his skin, for that sin-stained demon
Had bewitched all men's weapons, laid spells
That blunted every mortal man's blade. (368-378)
The world of Beowulf and Grendel is a world that includes magic. Epic poems are not known for their realism, and this one is no exception.
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