One of two reasons, I believe. I'm sure that some older, wiser Barrowdowner will come along and confirm with a quote (probably the first explanation).<P>Either those types of weapons (Morgul-blades as they are called) will not suffer the touch of a pure being such as an elf or a powerful Dśnadan, hence the fact that it dissolves (in the book and the movie) only <B>after</B> Aragorn picks it up.<P>Or possibly, its work done, the <B>rest</B> of the blade disappeared. The fragment embedded in Frodo did <B>not</B> however. It remained inside him, attempting to work its way to his heart, where it would completely transform him into a lesser wraith, subservient to the Nazgūl. The fragment remained in the wound until removed by Elrond in Rivendell (and you thought Hugo Weaving was useless!) <P>Incidentally, you might well wonder why the Witch-King didn't just stab Frodo in the heart instead of the shoulder and do his job a lot quicker. In the <B>book</B>, Frodo lunges forward to attack, and the knife-stroke goes astray, hitting him only in the shoulder. It is at this moment that Strider reappears and Witchy doesn't get a second chance. The lesson learned is that Frodo, by fighting back, got off much lighter than he would have otherwise. In the <B>movie</B>, the Witch-King is not resisted by Frodo, and has the leisure to stab him wherever he wants. The fact that he doesn't plunge his knife straight into Frodo's heart makes absolutely no sense. Just thought I'd mention that.
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But Gwindor answered: 'The doom lies in yourself, not in your name'.
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