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'''Bold text'''SAMURAI SWORDS'''Bold text'''
It is not possible to talk about Samurai without talking about their swords.
During the ages they radically changed in form and, at the end, even in
meaning. This article will not discuss ideals related to the sword, rather
focusing on the change of the shape during the centuries, changes mostly
due to practical reasons.
Japan entered the iron age quiet late in front of other civilizations and
the China's influence,directly or thru the Korean peninsula, greatly influenced the
first swords produced in Japan. Already in the VI cenruty b.C. we have the
insurgence of a Japanese taste in fittings but the design of the blades
was still strongly influenced by the continent, being the fighting tactics
equally imported from China and mainly based on masses of footsoldiers
with spears and shields.
When these tactics changed due to the fight against Emishi for domain of the
Kanto plain, the advantages of a curved sword for horseback fighting begun
evidents to the japaneses, that already showed their tendence to practicality
and skillfullness in adopting foreign items adapting and upgrading them to
their needs.
Is generally agreed that the fully developed Japanese sword appearance was
around the 940 a.C., period in which we find the most ancient extant swords
with all the characteristics needed in the "ideal" japanese sword :
single edge differentially hardened with strong curvature.
Some of these ancient blades already shows another peculiarity of the
japanese sword : a softer steel inner core wrapped by one made of harder
steel. It's debated if all such ancient blades are made the same way,
but at least some shows that this technology was already used in this
period.
The japanese swords are divided in periods as follows :
Jokoto 上古刀 pre-938
early Koto 初古刀 938 ~ 1319
middle Koto 中古刀 1319 ~ 1460
late Koto 末古刀 1460 ~ 1596
Keigen-Shinto 慶元新刀 1596 ~ 1624
Kanei-Shinto 寛永新刀 1624 ~ 1658
Kambun-Shinto 寛文新刀 1658 ~ 1684
Genroku-Shinto 元禄新刀 1684 ~ 1764
early Shinshinto 初新々刀 1764 ~ 1818
middle Shinshinto 中新々刀 1818 ~ 1854
late Shinshinto 末新々刀 1854 ~ 1868
Gendaito 現代刀 1868 ~ today
There is another term we usually find when talking about japanese swords :
Shinsakutô 新作刀. This means "recently made swords" and is referred to
swords made by a living smith and after 1952 when the 1945 ban of forging
swords ended. It's basically a sub-group of Gendaitô, because if the smith
pass away, for the NBTHK (Nippon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kyokai) Shinsa
(judgement) the sword begins Gendaito.
The following layout shows the main "Sugata" (shape) changes of the japanese
sword with period and lenght (in shaku, 1 shaku = 30.3022 cm or 11.93 inches)
from right to left, first line first. When you're reading about a Samurai
fighting in the late Kamakura, most likely his sword had the shape you'll
find hereunder. Thanks to Valdek Laur for it.
It is not possible to talk about Samurai without talking about their swords.
During the ages they radically changed in form and, at the end, even in
meaning. This article will not discuss ideals related to the sword, rather
focusing on the change of the shape during the centuries, changes mostly
due to practical reasons.
Japan entered the iron age quiet late in front of other civilizations and
the China's influence,directly or thru the Korean peninsula, greatly influenced the
first swords produced in Japan. Already in the VI cenruty b.C. we have the
insurgence of a Japanese taste in fittings but the design of the blades
was still strongly influenced by the continent, being the fighting tactics
equally imported from China and mainly based on masses of footsoldiers
with spears and shields.
When these tactics changed due to the fight against Emishi for domain of the
Kanto plain, the advantages of a curved sword for horseback fighting begun
evidents to the japaneses, that already showed their tendence to practicality
and skillfullness in adopting foreign items adapting and upgrading them to
their needs.
Is generally agreed that the fully developed Japanese sword appearance was
around the 940 a.C., period in which we find the most ancient extant swords
with all the characteristics needed in the "ideal" japanese sword :
single edge differentially hardened with strong curvature.
Some of these ancient blades already shows another peculiarity of the
japanese sword : a softer steel inner core wrapped by one made of harder
steel. It's debated if all such ancient blades are made the same way,
but at least some shows that this technology was already used in this
period.
The japanese swords are divided in periods as follows :
Jokoto 上古刀 pre-938
early Koto 初古刀 938 ~ 1319
middle Koto 中古刀 1319 ~ 1460
late Koto 末古刀 1460 ~ 1596
Keigen-Shinto 慶元新刀 1596 ~ 1624
Kanei-Shinto 寛永新刀 1624 ~ 1658
Kambun-Shinto 寛文新刀 1658 ~ 1684
Genroku-Shinto 元禄新刀 1684 ~ 1764
early Shinshinto 初新々刀 1764 ~ 1818
middle Shinshinto 中新々刀 1818 ~ 1854
late Shinshinto 末新々刀 1854 ~ 1868
Gendaito 現代刀 1868 ~ today
There is another term we usually find when talking about japanese swords :
Shinsakutô 新作刀. This means "recently made swords" and is referred to
swords made by a living smith and after 1952 when the 1945 ban of forging
swords ended. It's basically a sub-group of Gendaitô, because if the smith
pass away, for the NBTHK (Nippon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kyokai) Shinsa
(judgement) the sword begins Gendaito.
The following layout shows the main "Sugata" (shape) changes of the japanese
sword with period and lenght (in shaku, 1 shaku = 30.3022 cm or 11.93 inches)
from right to left, first line first. When you're reading about a Samurai
fighting in the late Kamakura, most likely his sword had the shape you'll
find hereunder. Thanks to Valdek Laur for it.
