The Yasukuni Swords Rare Weapons of Japan, 1933-1945

by Kishida, Tom; Mishina, Kenji

• ISBN13: 9784770027542
• ISBN10: 4770027540
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-10-29
• Publisher: Kodansha USA

Summary

No other weapon in the world can boast of possessing such a high spiritual quality as the Japanese sword. For over a thousand years the sword was revered as the very soul of the samurai warriors who wielded it, commanding awe, respect, and an almost religious devotion. The tumultuous events of modern Japanese history and the nation's relentless drive toward technological advancement, however, irrevocably sealed the sword's fate, and, along with the samurai class, the sword became an anachronism, both culturally and militarily.

Author Biography

TOM KISHIDA was born in Taito Ward, Tokyo, in 1948 and graduated from Nihon University. He became a professional photographer and studied photography under Kenzo Takano. He is a member of the Japan Professional Photographers Society, and wrote and published in Japanese Yasukuni Tosho in November 1994. His highly advanced technique for photographing blades has been recognized by the British Museum as of sufficient quality for sword identification by professional appraisers.
KENJI MISHINA was born in Fukushima Prefecture in 1951 and graduated from Kanagawa University. He went on to become a Japanese sword polisher and a student of Living National Treasure Kokan Nagayama. He has translated for Kodansha International The Connoisseur's Book of Japanese Swords by Kokan Nagayama, 1995, and The New Generation of Japanese Swordsmiths by Tamio Tsuchiko, 2002.

Table of Contents

Introduction	7	(4)
Swordsmiths and Their Works	11	(27)
Hono-to (Dedication sword)	12	(1)
Yasuhiro	13	(1)
Yasunori	14	(1)
Yasumitsu	15	(1)
Yasunori	16	(1)
Yasutoshi	17	(1)
Yasunobu	18	(1)
Yasushige	19	(2)
Yasuyoshi	21	(1)
Yasuoki	22	(2)
Yasutake	24	(1)
Yasuaki	25	(1)
Yasukuni	26	(1)
Yasumune	27	(11)
Sword To Commemorate 50 Years of the Nihonto Tanren Kai	38	(3)
The Japanese Sword After the Meiji Restoration & The Meaning of Yasukuni to	41	(9)
The Nihonto Tanren Kai Foundation	50	(4)
Characteristics of Yasukuni-To	54	(17)
Workmanship	54	(2)
Forging	56	(1)
Mei (Signature)	57	(14)
Onkashi-To and Hokan-To	71	(1)
Tameshigiri	72	(1)
Sword Polishers	73	(1)
Inspection	73	(4)
Completion Ceremony of the Sword Forging Factory and Commencement Ceremony of Sword Forging	77	(3)
Forging Center of the Nihonto Tanren Kai	80	(4)
Restoration of the Tatara	84	(6)
Operation of the Yasukuni Tatara	90	(3)
Kotohira Nichiyo-Kigu Kenkyujo	93	(2)
Yasukuni Swordsmiths: A Record in Pictures	95	(9)
Essays on Yasukuni-To	104	(11)
Soldiers and Gunto	104	(2)
Memories of the Yasukuni Tanren Kai	106	(1)
Hot Water in a Polishing Bucket	107	(1)
Centlight and the Japanese Sword	108	(3)
On the Workmanship of Yasukuni-to	111	(1)
Encounter with Yasukuni-to	112	(3)
APPENDICES	115
The Nihonto Tanren Kai Foundation Members	116	(2)
Lineage of Tosho and Sakite of the Nihonto Tanren Kai Foundation	118	(2)
Certificates of Yasukuni Smith Name	120	(2)
Lineage of Sword Polishers of the Nihonto Tanren Kai Foundation	122	(2)
Tosho and Sakite	124	(14)
Sword Polisher	138	(1)
Saya Maker	139	(1)
Documents	140	(12)
Chronological Table	152