Capturing the spirit of old Japan and recognised by its deadly curvature, the samurai sword is widely recognised throughout the world as the most deadly of all Japanese weaponry. Although gaining modern fame and notoriety in modern epic cinema in such films as The Last Samurai and the Kill Bill series by Quentin Tarantino, samurai swords have long being an iconic symbol of Japan and its history.
The most famous samurai sword, the Katana, is curved and bladed only on one side – if you have seen Kill Bill, you will know exactly what I’m talking about. The Katana was developed in the 10th century to enable Japanese calvery to carry out surprise attacks on their enemy and was worn hung from the belt with the cutting edge faced upwards.
The craft of forging katana samurai swords peaked during 1190 – 1337 – many of the swords from this era we’re assigned national treasures. Thousands of swords are still circulated and collected from more recent times; the most popular ‘collection’ era’s being WW1 and WW2. eBay is a great place to find both old and new samurai swords, but beware of what you’re buying – a lot of swords sold today are machine replicas and only fit for display purposes.
There were however many types of samurai swords and the other often mentioned includes shorter swords, one being the wakizashi (shoto) and the tanto knife. Only the samurai were allowed to carry these as a pair.
Category: ‘Samurai Swords’
Samurai Sword Basics, A Brief History
How Samurai Swords Were Used (4 Ninja Secrets)
Did you know that samurai swords had a very specific purpose in ancient Japan? These days most people buy swords for either display, cutting practice, self-defense or martial arts practice.
If you understand how samurai swords were used in the old days, it will most certainly help you to make a wise decision the next time that you want to buy a sword.
So how were samurai swords used in Japan by ancient warriors?
Let me explain 4 ways:
1. The Katana was always the ninjas favorite and most important weapon. You can recognize a katana sword by its ray skin wrapped handle, single-edged blade with slight curve, and round hand guard. The curved blade gave warriors a lot of added cutting power in battle situations.
2. The Wakizashi was a secondary or “backup” weapon for ancient samurai warriors. You should know that most Wakizashi swords look almost exactly like a katana in regards to shape and workmanship. The main difference was that the wakizashi had a shorter blade, which made it perfect for indoor battles or fights where limited space was available.
3. How samurai swords were used involves more than just these two swords, however. The Nodachi was the largest sword that a samurai would carry. You can spot a Nodachi by its extra-long blade and massive handle. These samurai swords were best suited for ninjas with maximum power and strength due to their extreme size and weight.
4. Somewhere along the line in ancient Japan, a blade smith decided that the katana was too big and the wakizashi too small. This is exactly why he created the “Chisa” katana. This samurai sword looks just like a katana or wakizashi but has a blade that measures up somewhere in between the two.
Samurai Swords In History
Wars had played revolutionizing parts in Japan’s long line of history. For thousands of years, war clans controlled the country. Each clan is comprised of several related families and each is lead by a chief who are the families’ ancestors. Wars were almost always centralized on the struggle for land- only 20 % of Japan’s land is suited for farming, thus this condition gave rise to the knights of the Japan who are named as Samurais.
Duty is first and foremost at the heart of each Samurai warrior along with the Bushido or the Way of the Warrior. To become a Samurai is to overcome the fear of death. By this, they may serve their masters and their clan loyally and if serving would mean to forfeit their own lives, then that will be done.
To ensure that their lands are protected and the battles they fight are victories, ancient Japanese developed armors, codes and weapons. The weapons revolutionized along with the battles.
By the 9th-12th A.D. the Samurais had become a separate class. Within these periods, Samurais were divided into two: the knight-retainers or the Samurais and the warriors or the Bushi. Some of these were hired men and some are members of the ruling class. They surrender their lives to their Daimyos or landowners who are often the ruling member of the family and in return they were given fiefs or lands and position. Each Samurai is employed to serve and protect the properties of the Daimyo and in battles for land expansion and power.
Samurais made most of what are present in their environments. When horses were first introduced, they became masters in horses. Horseback riding were then incorporated into battles. They practiced both unarmed and armed combat. Bows and arrows were primarily used in combat; swords were just used for beheading the enemies. However, in the 13th century when they seriously engaged battles with the Mongols, they started to make use of their Samurai swords more and eventually manufactured more of these and the naginata and spears. They easily transformed to fighting on foot from fighting on horseback.
Samurais swords were generally divided into two: the daito-katana or the long sword which on average is more than 24 inches long and the shoto-wakizashi or the short sword that were 12-24 inches long. Samurai swords were often given names as to immortalize the soul of warriorship.
The earliest swords were straight and were typically fashioned after Chinese or Korean designs. But in the course of the battle, the Samurai swords were recreated to give much tougher design with sharper curved edge. This is the type of Samurai swords that went down to history.
Samurai swords were fashioned to near perfection. The basic elements combined to make Samurai swords are carbon and iron. To shape them, the sword smith makes use of anvil water, fire and hammers. Once the sword is forged, the sword polisher will set up the blade for the furniture that will enclose it. Once this is done, the sword tester will put the new blade to test by cutting through condemned criminals and dead corpses. He will first cut through the smaller bones moving to the tougher bones. The results of which are transcribed on the nakago or the metal piece that connects the handle to the Samurai sword.
Through their rise to power, the these knights and their Samurai swords were heralded as the ruling class in Japan’s hierarchy for several centuries well up to the 19th century. This era is noted for the Shogun or the most powerful ruling Samurais in their own time.