How are Authentic Samurai Swords Made?

How Japanese Swords are forged

 Authentic Japanese swords are made from specialized Japanese steel which consist of combinations of hard, high carbon content steel and tough low carbon content steel. There are qualities in both types of steel, both good and bad. High-carbon content steel is harder and able to hold a much sharper edge than low-carbon steel, but it is brittle and can break in combat. Low carbon content steel will allow the blade to be more malleable, making it possible to absorb impacts without breaking but this lower carbon content steel will become blunt in the process.

The blacksmiths who forge authentic samurai swords take advantage of the best attributes of both of these kinds of steel. The blacksmith begins by folding and welding pieces of both types of steel several times in order to work out most of the impurities. The high carbon content steel is then formed into a U-shape and a piece of low carbon soft steel is placed in its center. The resulting block of steel is then hammered, or “drawn out” to form a rough blank that will soon be a samurai sword.

At this point it may have only a slight curvature or none at all. The curvature of a samurai sword is attained by a process of heating and quenching the sword in water or oil. In this process the sword maker coats the blade with several layers of moist clay slurry which is a recipe that is unique to each sword maker, but in general this this composition can include: clay, water, (sometimes) ash, grinding stone powder and/or rust. The blacksmith will coat the edge of the blade with a thinner clay layer than the sides and spine. After this the sword is heated and then quenched in water, or oil. The clay functions as heat insulation so that only the edge of the blade will be hardened with quenching. This also causes the blade to form a slight curve due to the reduced strain along the spine.

 The quenching process also creates the distinct wavy line down the center of the blade. This is called the “hamon” which can only be seen after the sword has been polished. The hamon is where most say the beauty is to be found in samurai swords. Each hamon is unique to the sword’s maker and serves as the forger's signature.

After the sword blade is forged it will then sent to be polished. The polishing of samurai swords can take anywhere between one and three weeks. The sword polisher will use finer and finer grain polishing stones until the sword blade has a mirror finish. This process is called glazing. This will make the blade razor sharp and reduce drag, making it much easier to cut with. The curvature of a samurai swords blade also adds to its cutting force.

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What Makes a Katana Sword a Katana? Pt2

What Are Katana Swords?

   

        Katana swords are generally defined standard sized, moderately curved Japanese swords with a blade length greater than 60 cm, or 23 1/2 in. Katana swords are also characterized by their distinctive appearance, attributes which include: a curved, thin, single-edged blade with a circular or square guard, and a long grip, made to accommodate two hands. Katana swords have been renowned throughout their history for their beauty, sharpness, and strength.

        Katana swords were often paired with a similar smaller companion swords, such as a wakizashi or tanto, an even smaller similarly shaped sword (dagger). The pairing of a katana with a smaller sword is known as the daisho. The daisho could only be worn by samurai warriors as it represented their social power and personal honor.

        With a few exceptions, katana swords and the previous sword, the tachi can be distinguished from each other, only if signed,  by the location of the signature on the tang. In general, the signature (mei) should be carved into the side of the nakago, which would face outward when the sword was worn. Since a tachi was worn with the cutting edge down, and the katana was worn with the cutting edge up the signatures would have been on opposite sides.

        The rise in the popularity of katana swords by samurai warriors is speculated to have been due to the changing nature of close-combat warfare. The quicker draw of katana swords was well suited to combat where victory depended heavily on response times. Katana Swords further promoted this by being worn thrust through a belt-like sash (obi) with the sharpened edge facing up. Ideally samurai swords could be drawn and strike the enemy in a single lightning speed motion. Previous to the katana swords style, the curved swords had been worn with the edge of the blade facing down, suspended from a belt.

Which is your favorite Samurai Sword?        Wakizashi, Katana, Tanto?

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What Makes a Katana Sword a Katana?

What are Katana Swords?   

 Over the next few blog posts I will explain most of what makes a Katana Sword a Katana.  

      

        

  Katana Swords are by and far the most sought after of the samurai swords today. The history of the katana is long, and has been debated for many years as to it's accuracy. There are mostly only general dates and times associated with the rise of katana swords as a weapon of the samurai warrior. There is one absolute fact however, and that is;  Katana Swords became the staple chioce of weapon for the samurai.

      

  The first use of the word “katana” to describe a long sword that was different than a tachi was found sometime in the 12^th century. These were references to uchigatana and tsubagatana and seemed to indicate a different style of sword. Very possibly a less costly sword meant for warriors of a lower caste, or rank. Sometime around the year 1400, long swords signed with the Katana signature began to be made. This was in response to Samurai wearing their swords in what is now called “the Katana Style” (cutting edge up). Until then Japanese swords were traditionally worn with the signature facing away from the wearer. When the sword was worn in the style of a Katana, cutting edge up, the tachi’s insignia was facing the wrong way. Swordsmiths started signing their swords with a katana signature, this showing that some samurai  swords of that time period had begun to be worn in a different manner.

To Be Continued......follow my blog for the rest of the story.

What's your opinion? What do you think it is that makes the katana the sword of choice?

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