Facts and Fundamentals of Japanese Swords

Facts and Fundamentals of Japanese Swords PDF Author: Nobuo Nakahara
Publisher: Kodansha Amer Incorporated
ISBN: 9784770031303
Category : Antiques & Collectibles
Languages : en
Pages : 191

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Book Description
Aims to enable the reader to accurately judge the quality and pedigree of any sword. This book is illustrated with 160 b/w photos and 140 drawings elucidating details from nakago (tang) controlled rusting and inscriptions to the shape, dimensions, style, patina and every other visible element of the blade itself. This is the first book to enable the reader to accurately judge the quality and pedigree of any sword. This book is the first English translation of a key reference title published in Japanese in 2005. Its value lies in its purpose, which is to ensure that the reader is

Facts and Fundamentals of Japanese Swords

Facts and Fundamentals of Japanese Swords PDF Author: Nobuo Nakahara
Publisher: Kodansha Amer Incorporated
ISBN: 9784770031303
Category : Antiques & Collectibles
Languages : en
Pages : 191

Get Book Here

Book Description
Aims to enable the reader to accurately judge the quality and pedigree of any sword. This book is illustrated with 160 b/w photos and 140 drawings elucidating details from nakago (tang) controlled rusting and inscriptions to the shape, dimensions, style, patina and every other visible element of the blade itself. This is the first book to enable the reader to accurately judge the quality and pedigree of any sword. This book is the first English translation of a key reference title published in Japanese in 2005. Its value lies in its purpose, which is to ensure that the reader is

The Japanese Sword

The Japanese Sword PDF Author: Kanzan Satō
Publisher: Kodansha International
ISBN: 9780870115622
Category : Antiques & Collectibles
Languages : en
Pages : 218

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Book Description
One of the foremost experts on the Japanese sword describes their history andppreciations in this book, with photographs and illustrations.

Facts and Fundamentals of Japanese Swords

Facts and Fundamentals of Japanese Swords PDF Author: Nobuo Nakahara
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 1568365837
Category : Antiques & Collectibles
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Facts and Fundamentals of Japanese Swords is a practical, comprehensive volume that offers information, along with 300 photos and illustrations, enabling collectors to evaluate the veracity and quality of swords that they are considering acquiring or already have in their collections. The book is divided into three sections: An Overview of the Japanese Sword, The Forged Sword, and Consequences of Modification and Wear. Each section provides very specific, useful lessons by the author that serve as virtual hands-on experiences. With easily understandable examples, the author precisely instructs readers on how to discern and obtain a "healthy" blade, while avoiding fakes or potentially problematic blades. In addition, he shows not only the difference in styles and shapes of blades, but explains what the differences mean and how to interpret them from a buyer's/collector's point of view. Paul Martin, a Japanese sword researcher and curator, is a former member of the Department of Japanese Antiquities at the British Museum, London. He has translated the text, and drawn on his extensive experience and expertise in the field to adapt the author's theories and discussions, making them more accessible to Western readers.

Art of the Japanese Sword

Art of the Japanese Sword PDF Author: Yoshindo Yoshihara
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
ISBN: 1462909965
Category : Antiques & Collectibles
Languages : en
Pages : 592

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Book Description
In The Art of the Japanese Sword, master swordsmith Yoshindo Yoshihara offers a detailed look at the entire process of Japanese sword making, including the finishing and appreciation of Japanese blades. Japanese sword art stands out in many ways: functionality as a weapon, sophisticated metallurgy and metalsmithing, the shape of the blade itself--all contribute to the beauty of these remarkable weapons. The Art of the Japanese Sword conveys to the reader Japanese samurai sword history and Japanese sword care, as well as explaining how to view and appreciate a blade. With 256 full-color pages, this sword book illustrates in meticulous detail how modern craftsmen use traditional methods to prepare their steel, forge the sword and create the unique hardened edge. By gaining a good understanding of how a sword is actually made, the reader will be able to appreciate the samurai sword more fully. Topics include: Appreciating the Japanese sword History of the Japanese sword Traditional Japanese steelmaking Making the sword Finishing the sword

Samurai Sword

Samurai Sword PDF Author: John M. Yumoto
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
ISBN: 1462907067
Category : Antiques & Collectibles
Languages : en
Pages : 208

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Book Description
The samurai sword: a symbol of the spirit of old Japan, it embodies the samurai's steel discipline, unswerving devotion and peerless skill. With its creation, a feat of craftsmanship passed down by generations of artisans, the samurai sword is generally considered to be superior even to the famed blades of Western Damascus and Toledo. The Samurai Sword Handbook is a precise exploration of the samurai sword designed for sword collectors as well as anyone intrigued by these ancient blades. Detailing the origins and development of the samurai sword, its historical background, styles, famous schools and differences in construction, this revised edition of the classic reference outlines methods of identifying and researching the sword, as well as caring for it properly. This must-have for sword lovers is sure to be a bestseller. Topics of this Samurai book include: Japanese History and the Samurai Sword Types of swords Parts of the sword Blade shape, construction, and grain The making of the sword Inscriptions and their readings Care and maintenance Appraisal and value Relative point values

Encyclopedia of Japanese Swords

Encyclopedia of Japanese Swords PDF Author: Markus Sesko
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 131256315X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 554

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Book Description
This completely new encyclopedic reference for the Japanese sword contains about 2,500 terms, many of them illustrated by photos and drawings. The Encyclopedia of Japanese Swords is an A-Z general encyclopedia covering each and every part of the sword: the blade, the mountings, the fittings, and all their different interpretations. Further, this encyclopedia also explains the literal or etymological meaning of each Japanese term and provides an even deeper insight into the subject.

Japanese Swords

Japanese Swords PDF Author: Colin M. Roach
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
ISBN: 1462915752
Category : Antiques & Collectibles
Languages : en
Pages : 589

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Book Description
With over 300 stunning photographs and woodblock prints along with extensive historical and cultural commentary, Japanese Swords is the ultimate authority on Samurai weaponry. Historically, Japanese warriors considered their swords to be far greater than simple weaponry. Their swords were both lethal tools and divine companions -- social and religious icons. Traditionally worn by the samurai as a sign of social status, the Japanese sword represented the junction between the reigning military class and those whom they ruled. Moreover, the samurai sword was a technological and artistic marvel. Many scholars consider it to be the finest sword ever constructed. In terms of symbolism and historical importance, no other blade comes close to the Japanese sword. With a historical, iconographical, and technological perspective, author Cohn M. Roach provides an in-depth study of these magnificent weapons in Japanese Swords. This richly illustrated sword book weaves the blade's primary influences together, tracking its history and illuminating its progress from infancy to grandeur. By studying the evolution of the Japanese sword from this perspective, we better understand Japan and its warrior archetype. Combining research materials from multiple disciplines, Roach uses his expertise as an educator to guide readers through the sword's rise to greatness in a unique way. This book discusses the history, development, and spiritual symbolism of the sword, as well as the esoteric metallurgical techniques used in making it. It also covers the difficult training practices used by skilled swordsmen. Japanese Swords also includes a companion video content featuring a beautifully-filmed documentary that explores the traditional swordmaker's craft. The video content also contains an introduction to the Japanese sword at a sword shop in Kyoto and a visit to a dojo for a beginner's class in the medieval sword-drawing art called iaido.

The Craft of the Japanese Sword

The Craft of the Japanese Sword PDF Author: Leon Kapp
Publisher: Kodansha International
ISBN: 9780870117985
Category : Antiques & Collectibles
Languages : en
Pages : 176

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Book Description
From raw steel to tempered blade, this text presents a visual account of thencient craft of swordmaking as practiced in modern Japan.

Study of Japanese Swords

Study of Japanese Swords PDF Author: Yurie Endo Halchak
Publisher: Alpha Book Publisher
ISBN:
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
This is a series of entry-level lectures on the Japanese sword and its history for those who are interested in studying Japanese art swords. The Japanese sword was basically designed as a weapon, but Japanese swordsmiths imbued qualities of grace and beauty into the blades as well as functional superiority. The intricate patterns of surface and texture formed by their highly developed forging and tempering techniques were made only in Japan. In the past, the Japanese looked at the swords as a spiritual symbol of Samurai, temples, and shrines. Nowadays, the Japanese regard swords as a cultural art object made of steel. Varieties of the appearance of swords are closely related to historical events. Textures, contours, and tempering designs are characteristics of a particular school (Den 伝) of swordsmiths. This is a series of lectures that discuss each period's history then talk about the swordsmiths' schools that were active in a particular province at the time. Because of that, each section starts with the history of the time. It is necessary to discuss history to see the flow of the events that affected the swords' shape and style.

The Last Samurai

The Last Samurai PDF Author: Mark Ravina
Publisher: Wiley + ORM
ISBN: 1118045564
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 222

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Book Description
The dramatic arc of Saigo Takamori's life, from his humble origins as a lowly samurai, to national leadership, to his death as a rebel leader, has captivated generations of Japanese readers and now Americans as well - his life is the inspiration for a major Hollywood film, The Last Samurai, starring Tom Cruise and Ken Watanabe. In this vibrant new biography, Mark Ravina, professor of history and Director of East Asian Studies at Emory University, explores the facts behind Hollywood storytelling and Japanese legends, and explains the passion and poignancy of Saigo's life. Known both for his scholarly research and his appearances on The History Channel, Ravina recreates the world in which Saigo lived and died, the last days of the samurai. The Last Samurai traces Saigo's life from his early days as a tax clerk in far southwestern Japan, through his rise to national prominence as a fierce imperial loyalist. Saigo was twice exiled for his political activities -- sent to Japan's remote southwestern islands where he fully expected to die. But exile only increased his reputation for loyalty, and in 1864 he was brought back to the capital to help his lord fight for the restoration of the emperor. In 1868, Saigo commanded his lord's forces in the battles which toppled the shogunate and he became and leader in the emperor Meiji's new government. But Saigo found only anguish in national leadership. He understood the need for a modern conscript army but longed for the days of the traditional warrior. Saigo hoped to die in service to the emperor. In 1873, he sought appointment as envoy to Korea, where he planned to demand that the Korean king show deference to the Japanese emperor, drawing his sword, if necessary, top defend imperial honor. Denied this chance to show his courage and loyalty, he retreated to his homeland and spent his last years as a schoolteacher, training samurai boys in frugality, honesty, and courage. In 1876, when the government stripped samurai of their swords, Saigo's followers rose in rebellion and Saigo became their reluctant leader. His insurrection became the bloodiest war Japan had seen in centuries, killing over 12,000 men on both sides and nearly bankrupting the new imperial government. The imperial government denounced Saigo as a rebel and a traitor, but their propaganda could not overcome his fame and in 1889, twelve years after his death, the government relented, pardoned Saigo of all crimes, and posthumously restored him to imperial court rank. In THE LAST SAMURAI, Saigo is as compelling a character as Robert E. Lee was to Americans-a great and noble warrior who followed the dictates of honor and loyalty, even though it meant civil war in a country to which he'd devoted his life. Saigo's life is a fascinating look into Japanese feudal society and a history of a country as it struggled between its long traditions and the dictates of a modern future.