My good friend, Ian Alexander at Nihonto North (http://www.nihontonorth.com/), very kindly presented me with a very interesting Japanese sword blade. The blade, photo above is of particular interest to practitioners of Chinese swordsmanship because it is of a type that was exported to China in large numbers during the late Ming dynasty. Ian wrote a long and through description of these swords that he sent along with the blade that I have shared below -
This blade bridges the Japanese and the Chinese swords during the Mid to Late Muromachi period in Japan (1500’s). This is an example of actually two types of swords;
Firstly it is a Katate-Uchi (One Handed Fighting sword) – Not to be confused with the Wakizashi, the Katate-Uchi are considered long swords in appraisal and value.
As the style of warfare changed from being fought one on one, and on horseback (This drastically changed due to the 2 attempted Mongol Invasions many years earlier), battlefield warfare was more chaotic and due to the tight confinements of having soldiers surrounded around you, one did not have the room or time to fight with a full length Tachi. Thus many Tachi of old were shortened to fit this new style of warfare. The swords produced at the time for the frontline Infantry were all made in this new fashion. Ranging from 21” to about 26” in length and a single handed Nakago (Tang). They were quicker to draw (it is during this time period that Iaijutsu was officially born), and were easier to use in battle and in tight spaces (like fighting indoors, as assassination was much more common than one would think).
Secondly this is an example of a Kazu Uchi Mono (Mass produced swords used for fighting and not as art pieces/heirlooms). Not to be confused with modern day mass production these were still all handmade often by some very high level sword smiths, however they used softer (cheaper) steel and were often hardened and laminated in a basic manner. Precision refinements were ignored and the blade was simply a tool of war. These also were made for export to China and were called “Bundle swords” as they were often sold in bundles. (Despite what some high end collectors would say, in terms of function kazu uchi mono were often more durable than their more expensive counterparts due to the softer steel being used).
This particular sword is made in the Bizen Tradition (There were 5 major Sword schools of the Koto, Pre 1600 time period. Yamato, Yamashiro, Soshu, Bizen, and Mino). Bizen was by far the largest and most famous. It was made by the Sukesada line of sword smiths, (also by far the largest line of sword making in Japanese history). This line was all but extinguished by the great flood of the Bizen province that coincidently marks the end of the Koto times and the beginning of the Shinto times. The Sukesada family and their way of making swords was more or less extinct. Some Sukesada offshoot smiths survived and carried onto the Shinto times, however the skill and style of what made the Sukesada’s famous was lost forever.
This particular sword probably wouldn’t be worth a full polish although could benefit from being cleaned up a little, if one were to put a Tsuka (or handle on it), one can truly feel the balance and handling of such a sword. Compared to its modern counterparts it is a night and day difference.
I thought it may help you in further studies especially since it may help bridge the gap between Chinese swords that I know you know, and the Japanese; as the Chinese and Japanese shared a lot during the Tang & Song (and to an extent the Ming) Dynasties. It is after this time period the end of the Muromachi, and beginning of the Tokugawa reign that outside contact was outlawed and cut off. It is interesting to credit the Chinese; that Japanese swords began because of Chinese Influence and reached their pinnacle when China and Japan collaborated with each other, whether through trade or other means. The Japanese sword more or less lost a huge measure of functionality during the Tokugawa reign and Chinese influence was essentially cut off. The Japanese sword at that time looked amazing, and was very elaborate. But all save for a few smiths, were of inferior quality. The ironic thing is that it took less than 2 generations from the end of the Koto time period and the beginning of the Shinto time period to have this effect.
This is not to say Shinto swords are junk, they are very nice and some do perform quite well, however they except for a handful of sword smiths never achieved the same quality that they had during Koto times. It is for this reason that after the end of the Shinto Period, the Shinshinto Period was born (and short lived). Sword makers and Swordsman realized the fragility of Shinto swords and attempted to copy and make swords the old Koto way. Some got close but never really achieved the majesty of Koto manufacture. However because of improvements in material (over having to make your own material) the quality of swords improved even if the skill of the sword smith did not persay. Just as Shinshinto swords were reaching their peak the Samurai culture was ended in one perhaps not so clean stroke, and the wearing of swords was banned. Sword manufacture nearly went extinct, and only a handful of sword makers continued to make swords. (Most changed to making knives and tools, like the famous Ishido School for example).
As the Russo Japanese war and the Sino Japanese war were gearing up Sword manufacture started to increase, however the demand for swords were so high that swords were more or less being stamped out and quality was hit or miss. With the start of WW2, the Japanese were experimenting with many types of metals and a variety of different types of swords were produced, many in the early part of the war were of very good quality, although not traditionally manufactured. However as the war progressed demand increased and materials decreased, quality faced a sharp decline and swords were reduced to no more than sharpened bars of steel. At the end of WW2 the Japanese were banned from having any weapon or warlike instrument (Such as swords), and these were rounded up and confiscated. This would have marked the end of the Japanese sword if it weren’t for some sword makers and swordsman that went underground. Those that remained in the public like the famous Swordsman Nakayama Hakudo, influenced the change from combat techniques of old to the Sport/Exercise techniques we see in modern day. Hakudo was also an advocate of Shinsakuto (OR new modern swords), he felt that with all the improvements in the refinement of steels and the scientific method provided consistency in manufacture that new swords were superior to those of even the Koto time period. It was because of this that Japan was once again allowed to bring back the sword, not as a tool of war but rather a way to improve oneself. Very few schools still teach the old way of using a sword; however there are handfuls that still do throughout the world.
In essence this sword in particular although considered a Kazu Uchi Mono, is a reflection of the last of the Koto period swords, the end of an era, and a picture of the desperation warriors would have felt at that time.
More information about Ming period sword trade between Japan and China can be found at:
http://markussesko.com/2013/11/01/japanese-sword-trade-with-ming-china/
Many thanks to Ian for his generous gift. I haven’t decided yet what I will do this blade. I will certainly clean it a bit and see what pattern can be discerned. I am also thinking of putting a handle on it and using it for saber practice.
