Just like the best clothes are handmade, genuine samurai swords are handmade and always will be. Creating a samurai sword is an extremely skilled specialist job and not one any layman (or even someone skilled in other areas of forging) can just start doing. Most people could correctly guess that a swordsmith is the person [...]
There’s something unique about Japanese samurai swords which captures the imagination and doesn’t let go until it’s run riot with it. Images which spring to mind upon inspecting a beautiful Japanese samurai sword may be ones of solitary Ronin, roaming feudal Japan, with only his katana, skill and wits keeping him alive. It can sometimes [...]
In the West the popularity of samurai sword sets continues to grow as people realize they make excellent decorative pieces and talking points. Samurai sword sets comprise of a Katana, Wakizashi and Tanto and stand, and come in many different forms from the highly decorative and ornate designs too simplistic minimal designs so there is [...]
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 [...]