Heian period – Study of Japanese Sword

July 15, 2019June 6, 2021 Yurie Endo 遠藤由利江 60| Second Part of ---24 Sengoku Period Sword

57| Part 2 of — 23 Sengoku Period Sword (戦国時代刀)

Chapter 57 is a detailed part of Chapter 23, Sengoku Period Sword. Please read Chapter 23 Sengoku period sword before reading this section.

0-timeline - size 24 Sengoku Period

The red circle above indicates the time we discuss in this section

During the Sengoku period (Warring States time), the Mino Den group and Bizen Osafune group were the primary sword makers. During almost 100 years of the Warring States period, all Daimyos needed a large number of swords. If suppliers were closer, that was even better. Many Sengoku Daimyos (戦国大名: warlord) could reach the Mino area easily because the location was convenient. Since the Heian period, Mino swordsmiths were creating swords there.

One of the well-known swordsmiths of Mino Den at the end of the Kamakura period was Shizu Kane’uji (志津兼氏). He was one of the Masamune Jitteru (正宗十哲)*. But the real height for the Mino Den was the Sengoku period. During the Sengoku period, the Shizu group and the Tegai group from the Yamato area and many swordsmiths from Yamashiro (Kyoto) area moved to Mino. Mino became the busiest sword-making place. They made very practical swords for the Sengoku (Warring States Period) feudal lords.

*Masamune Juttetsu (正宗十哲) —–The original meaning of Masamuren Jittetsu was the top 10 Masamune students. However, later, this word was used more broadly. Masamune Jittetsu (正宗十哲)：https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/7194/

Three examples of Sengoku period swords

Three swords below are examples of the Sengoku period swords. Please note that every sword is different. Even each swords made by the same swordsmith is different. Please refer to Chapter 23 Sengoku Period Sword for the primary common characteristics of the sword made during the Sengoku period,

60 Sukesada illustration

Bizen Osafune Yosozaemon Sukesada (備前国住長船与三左衛門尉祐定) from Sano Museum Catalog (permission granted).

Characteristis on the sword above

Hamon is Kani-no-tsume (crab claw pattern, see above Hamon). Kani-no-tsume pattern hamon never appeared in the Heian, Kamakura, or Nanboku-cho period. This type of Hamon is one of the decisive points to determine as a Sengoku Period sword. Marudome-hi (the end of the groove is round ) often appears on the Bizen Den sword during the Sengoku period. Wide tempered area. Midare-komi Boshi (Hamon on the body and the Boshi is the same type) has a long turn-back and an abrupt stop. Hamon is the Nioi base. Most Bizen swords have Nioi, with a few exceptions.

60 Kanesada photo 60 kanesada illustration Izuminokami Fujiwara Kanesada (和泉守藤原兼㝎)　from Sano Museum Catalog

Characteristic on the sword above

The last letter of the Kanji (Chinese characters) of the swordsmith’s name above is “㝎.” We use this uncommon letter in place of common “ 定” for him. The reason is there are two Kanesada. To distinguish him from the other Kanesada (兼定), we instead use the letter “㝎 “ and call him Nosada “のさだ.”

Izuminokami Fujiwara Kanesada (AKA Nosada) is the top swordsmith of Mino Den at the time. The sword’s shape is the typical Sengoku period style: shallow curvature, Chu-gissaki (medium size Kissaki), and pointed Gunome Hamon. The width of the Hamon is wide and narrow. Often, Nosada and other Mino Den swordsmiths have wood grain patterns with Masame on Ji-hada. Nioi base, mixed with coarse Nie.

60 Norimitsu photo Bizen Osafune NorimitsTu (備前長船法光) from Sano Museum Catalog, permission granted.

Characteristic on the sword above

Shallow curvature. Sturdy look. Marudome-hi (Hi ends round). Pointed Hamon called Togari-ba (尖り刃). Nioi base mixed with Nie. Slight Masame and wood grain pattern on Ji-hada.

December 22, 2018June 20, 2021 Yurie Endo 遠藤由利江 6| Heian Period Sword 792-1192 «part 2», Uncategorized

38|Part 2 of — 5 Heian Period Sword 794-1192 (平安太刀)

This chapter is a continued part of Chapter 5 Heian Period Sword. Please read Chapter 5 before reading this section. More sword terminologies will be used in the coming chapters. They were explained between chapters 1 to 31. For unfamiliar sword terminologies, please read chapter 1 to 31.

0-timeline - size 24 Heian The red circle above indicates the time we discuss in this sect

There are several active schools of swordsmiths during the Heian period. We use the word “Den” for school. They are Yamashiro Den (山城伝), Yamato Den (大和伝), Bizen Den (備前伝). Also, the following areas are other active groups during the Heian period: Houki-no-Kuni (伯耆の国), and Oo-U (奥羽). Oo-U is pronounced “Oh,” and “U” as uber.

Yamashiro Den (山城伝 )

During the Heian period, among Yamashiro Den swords, the most famous sword was “Mikazuki Munechika “ (三日月宗近) by Sanjo Munechika (三条宗近). Mikazuki means crescent. It was named Mikazuki Munechika because the crescent-shaped Uchinoke (collection of Nie) pattern appears in Hamon. It has a graceful shape, narrow-body, Koshi-zori, Funbari, and small Kissaki. It shows the wood grain pattern surface and Suguha with Nie mixed with small irregular, sometimes Nijyu-ha (double Hamon: 二重刃) appears. Sanjo Munechika lived in the Sanjo area in Kyoto. His sword style was carried on by his sons and grandsons: Sanjo Yoshiie (三条吉家), Gojo Kanenaga (五条兼永), and Gojo Kuninaga (五条国永 ). Gojo is also an area in Kyoto.

38Sanjo Munechika

　　　　三日月宗近 Mikazuki Munechika 東京国立博物館蔵　Tokyo National Museum 　 Photo from “Showa Dai Mei-to Zufu 昭和大名刀図譜” published by NBTHK

Houki -no-Kuni (伯耆の国)

Houki-no-Kuni is today’s Tottori Prefecture. It is known as the place to produce good iron. The sword, “Doujigiri Yasutsuna” (童子切安綱) made by Houki-no-Yasutsuna (伯耆の安綱) was one of the famous swords during the time.

The characteristics of Yasutsuna’s sword———-It has a graceful shape with small Kissaki, narrow Hamon (often Suguha with Ko-choji), coarse Nie on Hamon area, large wood grain pattern mixed with Masame on Ji-hada. Hamon area often shows Inazuma and Kinsuji. Boshi area is Yakizume, Kaen (pronounced ka as a calf, en as engineer) with a small turn back.

6 Sano Hoki Yasutuna

　　　伯耆の安綱 (Hoki no Yasutsuna)　佐野美術館図録 (Sano Musem Catalogue) Permission to use granted

Bizen Den (備前伝 )

Bizen is today’s Okayama Prefecture. It is known as the place to produce good iron. From the Heian period until now, Bizen has been famous for the sword-making tradition. The sword-making group in this area during the Heian period was called the Ko-bizen group. The most famous swordsmith in the Ko-bizen group was Bizen Tomonari (備前友成), Bizen Masatsune (備前正恒), and Bizen Kanehira (備前包平).

Ko-bizen group’s characteristics ——- A graceful narrow body, small Kissaki, narrow tempered line with Ko-choji (small irregular) with Inazuma and Kin-suji. Ji-hada is a small wood grain pattern.

6 Sano Kanehira

　　　Bizen Kanehira (備前包平)　Sano Museum Catalogue (佐野美術館図録) (Permission to use granted)

I saw Ko-Bizen Sanetsune (真恒) at Mori Sensei’s house. That was one of the Kantei-to of that day. I received Douzen*ᴵ. The book written by Hon’ami Koson was used as our textbook. Each time I saw a sword at Mori Sensei’s house, I noted the date on the swordsmith’s name in the book we used. It was Nov. 22, 1970. It had a narrow body line, small kissaki (that was Ko-bizen Komaru), Kamasu*2 (no fukura), and Suguha. Kamasu is the condition where the fukura (arc) is much lesser than usual. Thinking back then, it is amazing we could see famous swords like this as our study materials.

Kantei-Kai

Kantei-kai is a study meeting. Usually, several swords are displayed, with the Nakago part being covered. The attendees guess the name of the sword maker and hand in the answer sheet to the judge. Below are the grades.

Atari —– If the answer is right on the exact name, you get Atari. That is the best answer.

Dozen —- The second best is dozen. It means almost the right answer. The subject sword was made by the family or the clan of the right Den. Dozen is considered very good. It indicates the student has a good knowledge of the particular group.

Kaido Yoshi —– This means correct about the line, but not about the family.

Jidai Yoshi——- It means the time or period is right. Each Kantei-kai has different grading systems. Some may not have “Jidai Yoshi” grade.

Hazure—– the wrong answer.

After all the answer sheets are handed in, the answer sheets are graded and returned. The judge reveals the correct answer and explains why.

*1 Dozen: Almost the same as the correct answer.

*2 Kamasu: The name of a fish. It has a narrow and pointed head.

December 8, 2018May 23, 2021 Yurie Endo 遠藤由利江 5| Heian Period History Part 2 (平安時代 ), Uncategorized

37|Part 2of — 4 Heian Period History 　794-1192　　　(平安時代歴史)

This chapter is a detailed part of chapter 4 Heian Period History. Please read Chapter 4 before reading this section.

0-timeline - size 24 Heian

The circle above indicates the time we discuss in this section

Around the middle Heian period, a novel, “Genji Monogatari” (“The Tales of Genji”: 源氏物語) was written by a female author, Murasaki Shikibu (紫式部). She was an aristocrat court lady. Her father was Fujiwara Tametoki (藤原為時), a scholar. There were several novels and essays written by female authors around that time, but “The Tales of Genji” is the worldly known literature as the greatest Japanese literature. “The Tales of Genji“ is a treasure for the Japanese. We love this novel so much that the Japan Mint issued 2000-yen bill*ᴵ with a scene from the novel. See the photo below. The author herself is printed at the lower right corner on the back of the bill. The bill is very beautiful that, instead of using it, people just keep it. Therefore, it does not circulate much. I have four bills, but I cannot bring myself to use them. It is too nice to use.

The novel is about Hikaru Genji’s (the hero, 光源氏) love history (yes, history) from when he was about 16 years old until he died. There are ten more chapters after his death, called “Uji Jyu- jyo.” This section is a story of his son and grandson. When he died, the title of the chapter is “Vanishes into the cloud (雲隠れ),” a very poetic title. The Tales of Genji depicts the aristocratic society’s daily life, customs, lifestyle, and how people think in those days. Surprisingly, though they did not have the technology we have, the way they thought was not significantly different from us. The description of the process of courting is in 4 | Heian Period History (平安時代) 794 – 1192.

The author created Hikaru Genji (光源氏), the main character, a high-level aristocrat, an emperor’s illegitimate son. He was depicted as a most charming, good-looking, smart, and sophisticated aristocrat, and all the women fell for him. He would go around all kinds of women one after another; a beautiful woman, not so good-looking but very smart, very young, older, even including his stepmother, wealthy or not so wealthy, etc. It sounds like the story from the tabloid magazine. Still, Murasaki Shikibu depicted the hero’s and heroines’ thoughts, emotions, daily lives, and how the men thought about the women and vice versa, with her excellent writing skill. The author, Murasaki Shikibu, wrote this novel to entertain the female audiences in the court where she was living. It became so popular then that it is said that even the emperor at the time asked her how the next story would develop. “Genji Monogatari” is translated into English. You can buy the translated book on Amazon or go to YouTube and search for “Genji Monogatari” or “The Tales of Genji.” You will find many “Genji Monogatari” in Anime, old TV programs, and old movies in full or short clips.

Another female author, Sei Sho-nagon (清少納言), wrote an essay called “Makura no Soshi “(枕草子) around the same time. In it, she described the court ladies’ daily lives. In one chapter, she mentioned kakigori (shaved ice: かき氷). High-class people then must have had a chance to eat shaved ice, though the ice was not easy to come by during summer in the middle Heian period.

Once you have the general idea of how the Heian aristocrat life was like, you may realize why the Heian sword is shaped like the way it is. And it becomes easier to identify a Heian sword from amongst other swords that were made in different times and different provinces than Kyoto. All sword styles reflect the society where the swordsmiths lived. During the Heian period, the Yamashiro Den style represented sword style. In the next chapter, the subject matter is centered around the Yamashiro Den, though there were other sword groups in different regions.

*1 The back of 2000 yen bill

5 Heian 3 photoes.jpg Part of the Burke Album, a property of Mary Griggs Burke (Public Domain) Paintings drew by Tosa Mitsukuni (土佐光国), 17 century. The scenes are based on the Tales of Genji

August 19, 2017October 12, 2022 Yurie Endo 遠藤由利江 5. Heian period history

4 | Heian Period History (平安時代歴史) 794 – 1192

Heian period（平安時代 ) is from the time when the Emperor Kanmu(桓武天皇) moved the capital city to Heian-Kyo(平安京) at 794, that is Kyoto(京都) today.

0-timeline - size 24 Heian

The circle indicates the time we discuss in this section.

During the Heian period, the emperors ruled Japan. However, in the early part of this time, the Fujiwara family, a very wealthy aristocrat family, had real political power. The Fujiwara family managed their daughters to marry the emperors. They obtained power through those marriages. The family was called “Sekkan-ke” (摂関家), which means the family of the guardian or the representative of the emperor.

In those days, aristocrats led an elegant, refined lifestyle and cultivated a graceful culture. Many essays and novels were written by female authors during the time. The most famous one is “Tales of Genji (源氏物語)” written by Murasaki Shikibu (紫式部). The Imperial court held ceremonies quite often followed by elaborate and extravagant banquets. The imperial social life played an important role for aristocrats to get ahead in their political careers. Women also actively participated in the ceremonies. Many high-ranking officials had several huge houses. Sometimes those houses were inherited by their daughters, and the daughters lived in the house.

The way of courting was very different then. To begin a romantic relationship, a man would write a poem called “Waka” to a lady he set his eyes on and would have his servant bring the poem to her, hoping she would write him back a corresponding poem. Once he was accepted by the lady, first he was allowed to visit her for a short time from some distance away. As the relationship deepened, he visited her more often and stayed longer. Once they were married, and if she was his first legal wife, she lived with him in his house. However, if she was not the first legal wife, she remained in her home, and he would visit her for a few days or longer at a time. The wife’s family raised their children. In those days and up until the next Kamakura period, the women’s lineage was considered important. By the middle of the Heian period, the Emperors regained their political power since their mothers were not from the Fujiwara family.

5 b Genji photo

Those two are scenes from the “Tales of Genji”. I found those pictures in Kyoto sometime ago.

Origin of Samurai

Although the Heian Imperial court and aristocrats had a graceful and elegant life, they did not have a strong political power to control the country. There were many thieves, constant fires, and fights everywhere. The Imperial court, aristocrats, and temples began hiring armed guards or security force to protect themselves in order to maintain public peace. Those hired hands were the origin of Bushi (武士) or Samurai (侍). Samurais spread their presence and grew larger in power as they formed groups and quelled uprisings. Eventually, two powerful samurai clans emerged: One was Heishi (平氏) or often called Heike (平家), the other, Genji (源氏). Little by little, they gained power in the Imperial court. After many power struggles between them, Heishi started to control the Imperial court by having their daughters married to the emperors. Later in the Heian period, the political power was shifted to the Heishi. They became tyrannical and arrogant. This behavior created many enemies. The Genji clan, together with the Fujiwara family, started a war against the Heishi. The Genji pushed the Heishi to the final battleground called Dan-no-Ura (壇ノ浦) in 1185 and destroyed them. This battle is the famous Genpei-Gassen (源平合戦). The collapse of the Heishi was the end of the Heian period.

The Heian period is the time when curved swords appeared for the first time. Until then, swords had a straight blade. Historical studies on Japanese swords start from this point. The elegant, graceful lifestyle and culture the dominant Fujiwara family created then were certainly reflected upon the swords’ style. A group of swordsmiths in the Kyoto region created a particular sword style called Yamashiro Den (Yamashiro School). The shape of their blades shows a graceful line. The most well-known sword among Yamashiro-Den is Sanjo-Munechika (三条宗近), which is a national treasure today. The style of Yamashiro Den represents Heian period swords.

Sanjo Munechika

Sanjo Munechika (三条宗近) From Showa Dai Mei-to Zufu (昭和大名刀図譜) by NBTHK Owned by Tokyo National Museum

July 16, 2017May 19, 2021 Yurie Endo 遠藤由利江 2 | Time line

1 | Timeline

Let’s look at the diagram below. At the beginning of each chapter, a timeline like the one below will be shown. It will be a good reference to see which time period the subject matter is being discussed.

0-timeline - size24 original 1

From the Jomon period to the Nara period, the short top line is the time we call the Joko-to period in terms of the history of Japanese swords. The term “Japanese sword” we use today refers to the swords made after the Heian period (平安 794-1185). Usually, Joko-to is in the category of archaeological study. In the next chapter, we will discuss Joko-to. The bottom timeline and short descriptions below are the timelines we see in Japan’s general history books. The middle timeline is more specific for the sword study. My discussion will follow the middle timeline. The timeline diagram will appear at the beginning of each chapter for easy reference. The swords I discuss in this book are grouped together based on the shape, style, and trend of the time.

The difference between Tachi (太刀), Katana (刀), Wakizashi (脇差), Tanto (短刀)

Swords made before the Muromachi period (before 1392) are called Tachi (太刀).　　Swords made after the Muromachi (室町) period are called Katana (刀) and Wakizashi (脇差). Katana and Wakizashi were worn together. Tanto is a short dagger. Tantos were made throughout time. The difference between Tachi and Katana is how they were worn. Tachi was suspended from one’s waist belt, the blade side facing down. Katana and Wakizashi (called Daisho 大小 means large and small) were thrust between the belt and body two together, the blade side up. Usually, Tachi is longer than Katana. Wakizashi is shorter than Katana. Tanto is the shortest. When you face the swordsmith’s inscribed name, if the blade comes on the right, that is Tachi. When you face the swordsmith’s inscribed name, if the blade comes on the left, that is Katana and Wakizashi.

　　　　　　　Tachi > Katana > Wakizashi > Tanto

22 tachi & Katana

Ko-to (古刀) Shin-to (新刀) Shinshin-to (新々刀) Gendai-to (現代刀)

Ko-to is the swords made between the Heian period (794-1192) and the beginning of the Keicho Era (1597-1614). Shin-to is the swords made between the Keicho Era (1596-1614) and the Tenmei Era (1781-1789). Shin Shin-to is the swords made during Bakumatu time (幕末期 1781-1868). Gendai-to is from the Meiji Restoration (明治1868) through today. Even though the names of the eras or time changed overnight due to the political or dynastical changes through history, the changes in the sword style were always gradual.

In general history, the Bakumatsu time is simply the last part of the Edo period. However, for the sword classification, the Bakumatsu time is from around the Tenmei era (天明 1781) through the beginning of the Meiji 1868.