Difference between revisions of "Chiyoganemaru"
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==History== | ==History== | ||
According to the Ryukyuan official history ''[[Kyuyo|Kyûyô]]'', the defeated king of [[Hokuzan]] killed himself with this sword in [[1416]], when his kingdom was conquered by [[Chuzan|Chûzan]]. | According to the Ryukyuan official history ''[[Kyuyo|Kyûyô]]'', the defeated king of [[Hokuzan]] killed himself with this sword in [[1416]], when his kingdom was conquered by [[Chuzan|Chûzan]]. | ||
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| + | It is said that as [[Nakijin gusuku|his castle]] fell, [[Hananchi]] used the sword to smash a sacred stone in the [[gusuku|castle's]] ''[[utaki]]'' (central sacred space), and then committed suicide with the blade. He is said to have thrown Chiyoganemaru into the river as he died, after which it supposedly was carried by the currents to [[Iheya Island]], where someone found it and gifted it to the kings of Chûzan. | ||
==Description== | ==Description== | ||
Revision as of 20:35, 16 August 2013
- Japanese: 千代金丸 (chiyoganemaru)
Chiyoganemaru is a famous and prominent Ryukyuan sword, today designated a National Treasure of Japan. It is held in the collection of the Naha City Museum of History, where it is regularly displayed.
History
According to the Ryukyuan official history Kyûyô, the defeated king of Hokuzan killed himself with this sword in 1416, when his kingdom was conquered by Chûzan.
It is said that as his castle fell, Hananchi used the sword to smash a sacred stone in the castle's utaki (central sacred space), and then committed suicide with the blade. He is said to have thrown Chiyoganemaru into the river as he died, after which it supposedly was carried by the currents to Iheya Island, where someone found it and gifted it to the kings of Chûzan.
Description
The sword is a curved blade, likely forged in Japan and refitted to be wielded one-handed. The hilt, along with the pommel and scabbard, both in gilded black lacquer, are believed to have been produced in Ryûkyû. The blade itself lacks any inscription, but the pommel features a chrysanthemum design, and the two-character phrase taisei (大世), referring perhaps to King Shô Taikyû, whose divine name was Taisei-ô.
References
- Gallery labels, Naha City Museum of History, August 2013.
