Leon & Hiroko KappYoshindo Yoshihara

The Art of the Japanese

SwordThe craft and its appreciation

2 3

IntroductIon

by Leon Kapp

It appears likely that only Japan has completely preserved its traditional sword making technology from the feudal past, and this book is an effort to explain how to exam-ine and appreciate these swords. The authors feel that a good understanding of how these swords are actually made can provide a background and knowledge which will allow people to appreciate them.

Japanese swords are unique, both as a weapon and as art. In the past, these swords evolved to be very effective weapons, and were designed to cut well and efficiently. However, the properties and the design which makes them so effective as a weapon also makes them fascinating to look at, and make them a unique art in steel. The unique and sophisticated methods used to make them were perfected over hundreds of years in Japan, beginning sometime in the 4th to 6th centuries when the original swords and technology were imported into Japan from China via Korea. In Japan, swords are still made using completely traditional methods which were not lost during the transition from the feudal past into to-day’s modern world. Part of the fascination of these swords is their superb functionality, and the fact that they are made using iron ore smelted in a charcoal fueled furnace, and the steel is completely worked by hand, making each sword unique. The primary tools used are a charcoal fueled fire, a bellows de-sign which dates back approximately 2200 years, and hammers and human labor. However, even with modern knowledge and metallurgy today, it is un-likely that a better steel sword can be made. Another interesting aspect of these swords is that it is difficult to see all of their essential details. In order to exam-ine them, these swords must be clean, in good con-dition, it is necessary to have proper lighting, and it is necessary to hold the sword at a proper angle rela-tive to the light. The Japanese swords one may see today will frequently be in very poor condition, and will not be examined under proper lighting condi-tions. This Simply examining and appreciating these swords can often be difficult.

The Japanese sword is a fascinating object and can be appreciated from a number of viewpoints: their functionality and utility as a weapon and the so-phisticated metallurgy and scientific thinking of the craftsman who can make these swords. These swords are also a very unique art in steel: the most critical esthetic elements are the different steel crystal struc-tures and forms in the sword, as well as the shape itself. In addition, there is a long history of these swords as weapons and they still serve as living ex-amples of the improving and evolving technology used intheir construction. There is also an intimate connection between these swords and Japanese his-tory because the shapes and other details of the sword constantly evolved and changed with Japanese his-tory. Finally, it is very interesting to meet and learn from the craftsmen who make these swords today.

The Japanese sword is appreciated as art, however these swords are difficult to examine in detail. In or-der to carefully observe all of the important details in a sword, it must be in good condition and with no rust on its surface, it must not be “tired”, that is, it must not be over-polished or have been poorly restored or repaired in the past. Poor restoration or polishing can ruin the shape and obscure details on the surface. However, even if these conditions are met, good lighting and some experience with the traditional Japanese methods of looking at these swords will be very helpful.

The purpose of this book is to present the reader with a basic background about Japanese swords; to explain how to look at and appreciate the Japanese sword; and to show the details of how these swords are made and finished today. The craftsmen working today use completely traditional methods from the past to prepare their steel, forge the sword, and to create the unique hardened edge.

Making a new Japanese sword does not stop with the sword smith. After the sword smith makes the sword, it goes to a polisher for the final shaping and a polish which will bring out all of the details of the steel surface; it then goes to a habaki maker to make a “habaki”, a unique Japanese fitting which supports the hilt of the blade and secures the blade into the scabbard; and finally, the sword goes to a scabbard maker to make a simple “shirasaya” (a simple scab-bard designed to protect and preserve the sword), or a complete traditional functional mounting or “koshirae”.

The work of the sword smith will be described here along with the work of the other craftsmen in finish-ing and mounting the sword. Some of the tradition-al and modern sword history will be described to explain the events which resulted in the preservation of the traditional Japanese sword making techniques from the past.

The Yoshihara family has been active in making and promoting Japanese swords in Japan and internation-ally, and most of the modern work shown in this book are swords by Yoshindo Yoshihara and his fam-ily. Yoshindo’s grandfather, the first sword smith in his family, began making swords in the early 1930s in Tokyo and was considered one of the best sword smiths working at that time. Yoshindo and his broth-er Shoji are the 3rd generation in the family to make swords, and Yoshikazu, Yoshindo’s son, is the 4th gen-eration to make swords.

The topics covered in this book are appreciating and handling the sword, making the steel, making the sword, finishing the sword, a brief description of the sword’s metallurgy, some traditional and modern his-tory, and the vocabulary used to describe the parts of the sword. Hopefully, this book will provide a comprehensive introduction to the Japanese sword, which will help readers to examine and appreciate these swords.

6

Examining a Japanese Sword

Protecting and Maintaining a Sword

Sword Terminology

Examining a Hamon

The Steel and Structure of the Japanese Sword

Koshirae: Sword Mountings

Thoughts on the Japanese Sword

A P P R E C I A T I O N

CHAPTER I

Kansho

Appreciation of the sword

8 9

Examining a Japanese sword and looking at all of the critical but subtle details is difficult. A proper look at these swords requires good lighting and a sword in good condition with a good polish. When looking at a sword, there are three major aspects to think about: 1) the shape, 2) the steel surface, and 3) the pattern on the hardened cutting edge called the hamon.

To look at the shape, the sword is usually held up-right at arm’s length, so that the overall shape can be easily seen. Details to notice are the length, the degree of tapering from the base of the blade to the point, the degree of curvature, and the shape and

ExamInIng a JapanEsE sword

size of the point. The thickness of the blade along with its weight and balance can also be examined.

Next, one can examine surface of the steel. In this case, one looks at the flat side of the blade with a good light source above and behind the observer. It is possible to observe the steel’s color (which is usually not bright and reflective, but dark relative to most modern steels), and the texture or visible pattern on the surface. Often a “jihada” or clear pat-tern is visible. This jihada is the result of forging out the steel and folding it over on itself, usually about 12 to 14 times. Depending on how a smith folds and forges the steel, there can be one of several dif-

Yoshindo is holding a sword upright at arm’s length to examine the overall shape

and proportions.

In this painting from 1129 AD, Prince Arisugawa is examining a sword. Notice the sword is being rested on the sleeve of his kimono. He is being very careful not to touch the sword with his bare skin. We follow this custom to this very day. This screen is from the Kitano-Tenmangu shrine. Reprinted with permission of the shrine.

a b r i e f h i s t o r y o f t h e j a p a n e s e s w o r d

Koto Era

Shinto and Shin-Shinto Eras

A Brief History of Tanto

Gendaito

CHAPTER II

Rekishi

History

62

794

1185

1334

1394

1573

1603

1867

1912

1926

1989

Table Of Classic And Historical Periods

Sword Period Date Historical Period

上古刀 Jokoto

(Very Old Swords)

古刀(1000-1600)

Koto(Old Swords)

新刀 (1600-1790)

Shinto(New Swords)

新々刀(1790-1876)

Shin-shinto(New-new Swords)

現代刀(1876-present)

Gendaito(Modern Swords)

奈良Nara

平安Heian

鎌倉Kamakura

南北朝Nanbokucho

室町Muromachi

江戸Edo

明治Meiji

大正 Taisho

昭和 Showa

平成Heisei

65

t a m a h a g a n e a n d t h e t a t a r at r a d i t i o n a l j a p a n e s e s t e e l m a k i n g

Tatara History and Design

Tatara Construction and Operation

Tamahagane

CHAPTER III

The Tatara

Traditional japanese Steelmaking

98

Traditional Japanese SteelmakingTatara History and Design

Muneo Yaso, Ph.D.Director ,Wako MuseuM

shiMane Prefecture, JaPan

sible on a large scale, and the tatara smelters oper-ating around japan provided most of the tamaha-gane used for swords from this time on.

in prehistoric times, iron was imported into ja-pan from China and from the korean peninsula. Based on their own iron making technology and on influences from China and korea, the japa-nese developed their own smelting process to pro-duce pure iron and steel in the 6th century a.d.

this japanese smelt-ing method was called the “tatara” process. in this process, good quality japanese iron ore in a fine sand form (“satetsu”) and a large amount of charcoal are used. most of the high quality steel produced with this tatara process was called “wako”. this method of producing wako can be traced back more than 1000 years, and was in use

until the meiji period at the beginning of modern japan in the late 19th century. Wako or japanese steel was used for making japanese swords, car-penter’s chisels, kitchen knives, edged tools, etc.

the tatara process has exerted a great influence on japanese culture and history. today the tatara pro-cess is still used in the Chugoku region of japan (in Western honshu near the japan sea). japanese swords made from wako are superior to swords made from other steels or even from modern steel, so wako is a very interesting and valuable material. this chapter describes the history and characteris-tics of the tatara process and wako steel．

When the tatara walls are torn down, and the last of the burning charcoal is removed, the steel mass or kera is removed. It is lifted with a set of giant tongs and logs are rolled under it. The kera is then rolled out from the tatara furnace over the logs and down a slight slope to a work area outside of the tatara building. The kera is still very hot, and this can be seen by the fact that the kera can ignite and burn the logs it is coming into contact with.

a very unique component present in traditional japanese swords is the steel they are made from. this steel is called tamahagane and is made in a japanese style furnace or smelter called a tatara. steel made from tamahagane has very character-istic properties which contribute to the nature and qualities of the japanese sword. it has a high carbon content and it is very tough, which means that it can bend or deform and resist cracking or fracturing, and can easily be welded.

due to its composition, it can be heat treated to harden it, making it pos-sible to create the unique hamon on the sword’s cutting edge. steel made from tamahagane can also accept a superb pol-ish which makes it pos-sible to see all of the de-tails in the hardened edge and features in the steel composing the body of the sword.

the process used to make tamahagane dates back to the 5th or 6th century when steel swords first appeared in japan. this process was devel-oped and improved over the centuries, and en-abled the japanese to produce large quantities of high quality steel for use in swords as well as other steel edged tools. details of the tatara and its operation are described here, and this process as it is described here dates back to the edo period.

a sword smith can make small quantities of tama-hagane for swords in a small shop, but starting in the muromachi period, steel production was pos-

An early model of the tatara operating in the open at the base of a slope. The size is small compared to Edo period tatara.

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t h e s w o r d s m i t h

Tools and Preparation

Tanren: Forging

Tsurikomi and Sunobe: Forming the Blank

Hizukuri: Fully Shaping the Blade

Ara-Shiage: Rough Finishing

Tsuchioki: Applying Clay to the Blade

Yaki-Ire: Heat Treating

Shiage: Finishing the Blade

Hi and Horimono: Grooves and Engravings

Nakago and Meikiri: Filing and Signing the Tang

CHAPTER IV

Kaji

Making the Sword

114

Making TaMahagane in The Forge

Although most of the tamahagane used today comes from the traditional tatara in shimane prefecture which was described in the previous chapter, a sword smith can make his own tamahagane on a small scale in his forge, and often does so to recycle and re-use old iron and steel, and also to make small amounts of tamaha-gane to experiment with. in fact, it appears likely that the earliest sword smiths in Japan made most of their own steel on a small scale. Large scale production of tamahagane by specialists did not take place until the 14th or 15th centuries and afterwards in Japan.Using his forge, a sword smith can make enough tama hagane for one sword by working for a half day or full day in the shop. to make tama hagane for a new sword, Yoshindo can begin with pure iron (very pure electrolytic iron which has virtually no other contam-inating elements in it), or he can use old iron made from tamahagane sometime over the past 300 to 400 years. such iron is usually salvaged from old buildings such as shrines, temples, and old houses.modern electrolytic pure iron comes in large bars or rods and is forged out into thin sheets and broken up into small pieces before use. Generally the old salvaged iron consists of small nails, brackets, and other small structural pieces of steel used in construction. if these pieces of iron are large, they must be broken up into small pieces before using them to make tamahagane.once the starting material is ready to use for making steel, the forge is prepared so it can function as a small tatara or smelter. A bank of charcoal dust is built up on both sides of the “tuyeres” or pipes which bring the air into the forge. the bellows or fuigo pumps air into the forge through this pipe. the forge is cleaned up, and the area around and below the tuyeres is kept clear to maintain an unobstructed path for air to enter the forge. the Figure to he right shows the inside of the forge with the clear area around the tuyeres and the charcoal dust built up in front and behind the tuyeres. the charcoal barriers will act as insulation and con-serve heat inside the center of the forge where a high and uniform heat must be generated to smelt the iron into steel or tamahagane.Next, the center of the forge is filled to the top of the charcoal embankments with larger pieces of charcoal and the bellows is used to begin burning the charcoal and heating up the forge.the large pieces of charcoal which are used to heat the forge and smelt the iron can be seen in the center of the forge under the flames. these pieces are added to the forge until they reach over the charcoal dust embankments.

Electrolytic process pure modern iron.

Center of the forge with the charcoal banks and the tuyeres.

Electrolytic iron is hammered into a sheet and broken into small pieces for use in steel making.

Old nails, brackets, and structural iron pieces salvaged from Edo period buildings. All pieces of the iron are small if they are to be used in this process.

once the forge is hot enough, Yoshindo takes a handful of the old iron ,and places it on a shovel, and spreads it over the charcoal in the center of the forge.After the iron is spread over the charcoal, the forge is operated until the top of the charcoal burns down so it is 3 or 4 cm (1.5 to 2 inches) below the charcoal dust embankments. more charcoal is then added to the forge to raise the top of the charcoal over the dust embankments again. more iron is added to the forge again, and the forge is operated until the charcoal level drops again.this process is repeated, with iron being added and then charcoal being added, until about 3 kilo-grams (6.6 pounds) of iron has been added to the forge. Because of the scale of the forge, this is the maximum amount of iron which can be added to the forge and produce a good yield of steel. once the proper amount of material has been added to the forge, Yoshindo will continue to operate the bellows until most of the charcoal has burned up. h he will stop when the forge sounds right. he monitors this process by the sound the charcoal

Charcoal is burned to heat the forge. Old iron ready to be placed in the forge over the charcoal.

Yoshindo is listening to the sound of the forge to decide when to stop the process and retrieve the tama hagane.

Old iron being spread over the top of the charcoal.

and steel makes in the forge, and will stop the process when it sounds correct. once the forge is stopped, it is allowed to cool down, and at the bottom of the forge below the tuyeres open-ing, there will be about 2 or 2.5 kilograms (4.4 pounds) of tamahagane present.during this process the iron and iron oxide is re-duced to pure iron, and combines with the carbon in the charcoal to produce steel. the best fraction of this steel is tamahagane and will be used for making swords. this is an efficient process, and 3 kilograms (6.6 pounds) of starting material or iron will pro-duce about 2 to 2.5 kilograms (4.4 to 5.5 pounds) of steel or tamahagane. this process also offers a good opportunity for a sword smith to experiment with his steel, or to pro-duce custom steel on a small scale for a sword. in the process shown here, Yoshindo mixed old Japanese steel or iron salvaged from edo period buildings with an equal amount of modern pure iron. he will make a new sword out of this steel, and see what the hamon and the jigane or steel surface looks like, and this will guide his efforts in the future for making steel and swords.

126 127

Other crafts

togi: sword polishing

habaki: sword collar

shirasaya: storage scabbard

CAPTER V

Finishing The Japanese Sword

Polishing, Habaki, And Saya

194

The polisher Takaiwa Setsuo working in the traditional polisher’s position. Takaiwa is a mukansa level polisher and also holds the title of Tokyo To Mukei Bunkazai, or “Living Cultural Property of Tokyo

Togi: Sword Polishing

after the smith has finished working on a sword, there are still things which must be done before the sword is finished: the sword must be polished, a habaki must be made so the sword can be placed in some kind of scabbard, and a scabbard or saya must be made to protect the sword.

these three steps are done by three independent craftsmen who specialize in these crafts, and these crafts will be briefly described here.Once the sword smith has finished his work with a sword, the sword will go to a polisher to finish the sword. forging is rough work, and the blade has few features which can easily be seen at this point. the job of the polisher is to refine the shape, make the sharpened edge, refine all of the lines and surfaces, and bring out all of the important features of the sword’s surface such as the hamon, the jihada, and jigane.

New polishers usually become apprentices of practicing polishers and learn their craft through a traditional five year (or longer) apprenticeship. after they complete their training with a teacher, they can

become independent polishers. It is a difficult craft to learn, and there are many details and techniques which must be mastered to become a good polisher. Because there are so many techniques to learn and experiences to acquire, a large amount of time is required to become a professional level polisher.

Japanese sword polishing is almost as complex as sword making because the details of the sword and the steel will not be visible without a very fine polish. all of the fine structural and crystal elements in the surface of the steel must be made visible. there is evidence that polishers were able to polish swords well enough in the Kamakura Period (1185-1334 aD) so that these details were visible then. It also seems likely that polishing had advanced to a high level at that time because the sword smiths must have been able to see their work in detail to have been able to bring the Kamakura Period swords to such a sophisticated level.

refining the sword’s shape and making the sharp cutting edge is relatively simple, and it seems likely that most swords intended for combat were not

A selection of polishing stones in a shop in Tokyo

196 197

Bibliography

fuller, richard; and Gregory ron. Military Swords of Japan, 1868-1945. London: arms and armor Press, 1986.

fuller, richard; and Gregory ron. Japanese Military and Civil Swords and Dirks. charlottesville, Va.: howell Press, Inc., 1997.

Kapp, Leon; Kapp, hiroko; and Yoshihara, Yoshindo. Craft of the Japanese Sword, tokyo: Kodansha International, 1987.

Kapp, Leon; Kapp, hiroko; and Yoshihara, Yoshindo . Modern Japanese Swords and Swordsmiths: From 1868 to the present. tokyo: Kodansha International, 2002.

Kishida, tom. Yasukuni Swordsmiths. tokyo: Kodansha International, 1994.

Magotti, sergio. Nipponto: L’Anima del Samurai (Italian). Bagnolo san Vito, Italy: Ponchiroli editori, 2008.

Nagayama Kokan. connoisseuer’s Book of Japanese swords. tokyo: Kodansha International, 1997.

Nakahara (2010)

sato, Kansan. The Japanese Sword. tokyo: Kodansha International, 1983.

takaiwa, setsuo,; Kapp, Leon; Kapp, hiroko; and Yoshihara, Yoshindo. The Art of Japanese Sword Polishing. tokyo: Kodansha International, 2006.

Yumoto, John. The Samurai Sword. tokyo: charles e. tuttle, 1958.

Contact Information

Yoshindo Yoshihara

Japan 8-17-11 takasagoKatsushika-Kutokyo, 125-0054 Japanfax (81) 3-3607-3607-1405

Leon & hiroko kapp

Usaleonkapp@gmail.com

aram compeau

Usaaram.compeau@gmail.com

paoLo savioLo

Italy Via col di Lana, 1213100 Vercellitel. (39) 0161 391000fax (39) 0161 271256paolo@savioloedizioni.it

paoLo CammeLLi

Italy lupocamel@yahoo.it

236 237

© All rights and copyrights reserved Paolo Saviolo 2011

No part of the book may be reproduced in any form by printed, digital or electronic means (including photocopying, recording or information storage and retrieval) without written permission from the publisher.

Layout design and Creative Director: Hiroko Kapp, Paolo SavioloGraphic design: Paolo SavioloCopy Editor and text: Leon KappSupervisor text and history: Paolo CammelliPhotographs:Yoshikazu Yoshihara and Aram CompeauDrawings: Ryoichi Mizuki and Yoshindo Yoshihara

First published in a limited edition, January 2011Printed in Italy

ISBN 978-88-95125-11-4

saviolo edizioni | saviolo publisher

Via Col di Lana 12 | 13100 Vercelli (VC) | Italy Tel. +39 0161 391000 | Fax +39 0161 271256

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