Japanese Sword Bibliography

Katelyn Leonard

Annotated Bibliography

Grancsay, Stephen V. “Three Primitive Japanese Swords.” The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, vol. 27, no. 9, 1932, pp. 208–210. JSTOR www.jstor.org/stable/3255478.

This article talks about how the Japanese people hold a high standard to their swords like another culture would for a painting or sculpture. It is obvious that these are one of the most important things about their culture. This article is about three swords that were found in a tomb in the eastern province of the Japanese mainland. The three swords are of the quality that would say a person of high rank would have owned them. The author explains that there are three main classifications of swords based on their pommels; bulbous, ring-shaped inclosing an animal, and fish-tail. The author also states that no records show that the Japanese people learned blade making from foreign teachers. The ornament decorations such as mercury guilding where introduced from China. This article will be useful to me because it focuses on three old swords that were found instead of brand new ones being made now.

Hunter, Edward. “The Japanese Blade: Technology and Manufacture.” In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000-. http://metmuseum.org/toah/hd/japb/hd_japb.htm (October 2003)

This article gives an overview of how Japanese swords are crafted by smiths. The article is broken into different sections based on which area of the sword is being worked on, and each process is explained. In the article, the author explains the importance of tama-hagane, which is steel produced in a tatara smelter. The next step in the process of making a sword is kitae. Kitae is done to correct the impurities that are in the steel. This process is done by heating the block of steel and then folding it back into itself. This process produced the patterns called jihada, which the blades are famous for having.  The author explains that the smith can choose to produce two different types of patterns based on which way the folds go. These different patterns are called masame and ayasugihada. The author also explains the important step of hardening the edge of the sword. He says in many ways it is the most important and most difficult process in making the sword. To be a true Japanese sword it had to be amazingly sharp. This article will be useful to be when writing my report because it is important to understand the steps that go into making them.

“Japanese Swords.” The Art Amateur, vol. 13, no. 2, 1885, pp. 39–39. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/25628377.

In this article it talked about how much skill the Japanese smiths put into making the swords. The author talks about how the sword is a symbol for several different things such as divinity, knightly valor, and noble birth. The article also talks about a rule that foreigners know in regard to the swords use for suicide. If the person believes that their honor is stained they will use a short sword. A long sword is not used because it has been polluted by its use against an enemy. The article has sketches of swords from a collection belonging to Mr. Brayton Ives. The details that are shown in the guards are very intricate and was believed to be another place to show artistic design and craftsmanship. This article will be helpful to me because of the sketches that are shown. I am able to see some of the intricate detail work even though the article is so old.

“The Japanese Sword. Katana Wa Bushi No Tamashii (The Sword Is the Soul of the Samurai).” Museum of Fine Arts Bulletin, vol. 4, no. 21, 1906, pp. 29–31. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/4423299.

This article begins by talking about how Japan is the most famous, and most symbolic for making swords. Their specific ways of creating the swords is like none other. The article says that every sword is supposed to have its moral as well as physical characteristics and at the critical moment of hardening, when the smith submerges the blade underwater, it is said that a part of the smiths spirit enters the steel. The way the swords are made is seen almost as a religious ceremony. The article covers the steps involved in the making of the swords. The article also says that grooves or decorative designs can be cut into the surface to lessen the weight of the sword. The secret of blade making are often kept within the families and passed down through the generations of future blade makers. This article had several facts that I had not read in my other articles, so it will be helpful for my research.