Replica samurai swords can be good, decorative pieces. But, they’re just not the real thing. Authentic samurai swords are something else. They have a story behind them. How they were made, where, by whom. A unique ‘grain’ inside the blade making it a one off piece. The deadly product of a beautiful art which has [...]
Over the last few years, with a helping hand from hit movies like Kill Bill, a love and fascination with samurai swords has swept across the entire world – particularly the West. Samurai swords – with their excellent variety of styles – make excellent decorative pieces or collectables. There’s only one problem: real samurai swords [...]
Throughout it’s history, Japan has had many revered sword smiths. Those whose talent and reputation for producing blades was so great, they commanded the highest prices for their work.
In Japan, the fact is, to make a worthwhile living, you must be a very good sword smith and earn a reputation as such. Of course, like [...]
If you ever come into possession of an old samurai sword, even one which appears to have been lovingly looked after, you may well be mortified upon seeing the condition of the tang… most often the tang will be extremely rusty.
But, do not ever clean it!
I’m not telling you this out of some strange samurai [...]
It’s a gruesome question to ask, and I’m certainly not accusing you of foul play, but I have a little known tip for you which you can use to see if your samurai sword is holding any dark secrets.
What on earth am I talking about? I’ll explain…
Many, many moons ago, when samurai swords were not [...]
Basic Introduction:
If you’ve ever been fortunate enough to hold or closely examine a real samurai sword before, you will surely agree the detail and texture of the metal is exquisite. Also, the smooth polish and shine on them is mirror like.
It is the job of the polisher to not simply get a shine on the [...]
Everybody knows that steel is strong. Hardly surprising then, is the fact the material of choice to make samurai swords is steel.
Such a laborious and time consuming task is making a samurai sword that many people are confused over why the sword makers insist on heating, hammering and shaping out a piece of steel [...]
With modern technology and our understanding of science constantly progressing, we could be forgiven for thinking that anything which was created centuries ago would be of inferior quality to anything created now.
But is this the case with samurai swords? Are the swords which actual samurai carried around in those days of superior quality to the [...]
If like me, you love samurai swords and admire the craft, then you must surely realize learning how to make a samurai sword is not something which happens overnight. Nor is it something any article, any book, or any casual conversation can teach you.
It’s something which is taught only by a master sword smith to [...]
Real samurai swords are swords which have been handmade by fully trained and licensed swordsmiths. In swordmaking, like anything else, there are those who are exceptionally skilled and revered and those whose talent is less noted, however all swordsmiths in Japan have undertaken many years of apprenticeship training in order to become licensed to create [...]