Yurie Endo 遠藤由利江 3 | Joko-to, Uncategorized

2 | Joko-to (上古刀）

Joko-to refers to swords made before the Heian period.  Joko-to is not part of sword study. The study of swords begins from the Heian period.  Joko-to falls under the category of archaeology.

Jomon (縄文) period     9000 B.C.

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The Jomon period dates back to 9000 B.C.  This is between the Paleolithic and Neolithic periods. The characteristic of this time was the rope design (jomon 縄文) seen on their earthenware. 

A stone sword from this period was discovered.  It is a single piece, approximately 27 to 31 inches (70 to 80 cm) long. This is not a Neolithic scraper.  This item was made for ceremonial purposes.

Yayoi (弥生) period        300B.C to 300A.D (approximately)

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Around 300 B.C., the Yayoi culture replaced the Jomon culture.  Characteristics of the Yayoi culture are shown on their earthenware.  They were rounder, smoother, and softer in design, and their techniques had greatly improved since the Jomon period.  They are called the Yayoi culture because objects from this era were unearthed in the Yayoi-cho area (the name of the place) near Tokyo University in Tokyo.  They also discovered bronze artifacts, including a bronze sword (doken 銅剣), a bronze pike (do-hoko 銅矛), bronze mirrors (do-kyo 銅鏡), and bronze musical instruments (do-taku 銅鐸).  These items were imported from China and Korea, but the Japanese began making their own bronze items in the late Yayoi period.  Although iron artifacts are rarely found, evidence indicates that iron objects already existed at that time.

Himiko（卑弥呼）   

It is said that, according to the Chinese history book “Gishi Wajinden” (魏志倭人伝), around 300 A.D., there was a country called Yamataikoku (邪馬台国) that controlled about thirty small domains in Japan.  The country’s leader was a female figure named Himiko (卑弥呼), a shaman maiden.  She sent a messenger to the Chinese dynasty in 239 A.D., and she was given the title of head of Japan (親魏倭王), along with a bronze mirror and a long sword (five feet long).  Today, we still do not know the exact location of Yamataikoku.  This Chinese history book, “Gishi Wajinden” (魏志倭人伝), explains how to reach Yamataikoku, but if we follow the book’s directions exactly, we end up in the middle of the ocean, south of Kyushu (九州).  We still have a big debate over the exact location of Yamataikoku.

Yamato (大和) period        300 A.D. — 593 A.D

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At the end of the Yayoi period, Japan was divided into small regions.  These regions were ruled by local clans called Go-zoku(豪族).  Around 400 A.D., the most powerful Go-zoku united the country and named it Yamato-chotei (大和朝廷).  This was the first Japanese imperial court, the origin of the current Japanese imperial family. They were powerful enough to construct the enormous tombs called kofun (古墳) for themselves.  One of the famous kofun, Ogonzuka kofun (黄金塚古墳) in Osaka, contained swords among other items.  The sword’s hilt was made in Japan, while the blades were made in China.  On the surface of the hilt, they depicted a house design.  Other items found in the kofun include armor, mirrors, iron tools, and jewelry.  Outside the kofun, it was common practice to place haniwa (clay figurines).  These haniwa included smiling people, animals, houses, soldiers with swords, and sometimes simple tube-shaped haniwa (埴輪).  We believe they placed haniwa as retaining walls or as a dividing line for the sacred area.  Based on the writings on the backs of mirrors and swords, kanji (Japanese characters) were used around the fifth to sixth century.

Asuka (飛鳥) period         593 —710

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At the end of the Yamato period, after a long power struggle, Shotoku Taishi (聖徳太子) became regent in 593 (beginning of the Asuka period).  Shotoku Taishi established the political system and created Japan’s first constitution (憲法17条).  He promoted and encouraged Buddhism and built the Horyuji Temple (法隆寺) in Nara.  The image of Shotoku Taishi appeared on 10,000-yen bills for many years.  During the Asuka period, we see kanto tachi (環頭太刀), characterized by a ring-shaped hilt.   Kan (環) means ring, and to (頭) means head.  Also, on the ring-shaped hilt, there are inscriptions, such as the emperor’s name, the location, and numerals.  The numbers indicate the years when the specific emperor was enthroned.  All of these were straight swords.

Hilt of a Japanese straight sword.   Circa 600 AD.  From Wikipedia Commons, the free media repository

Nara (奈良) period        710 —794

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In 710, the capital city was moved to Nara, known as Heijo-kyo (平城京).  The shape of the Joko-to was straight, usually measuring 25 inches (60 –70 cm) in length.  It was suspended from a waist belt.  Some swords originated from China, while others were made in Japan.  Many swords were found in Kofun and Shoso-in (正倉院) during the Nara period.  Shoso-in is a storage building where Emperor Shomu’s (聖武天皇) belongings were stored.  Among other items, 55 swords were found there.  These swords are called warabite-tachi.  Warabi (Bracken) is the name of an edible wild plant native to Japan.  These swords are called warabite-tachi because the shape of the hilt resembles warabi, whose stem curls up at the top.

warabite tachi        The photo is from Creative Commons, a free media source for online pictures

Yurie Endo 遠藤由利江 1| Preface

Preface and Biography

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Preface

This book is a series of introductory lectures on Japanese swords and their history for those interested in studying Japanese art swords.

The Japanese sword was originally created as a weapon, but Japanese swordsmiths infused blades with qualities of grace and beauty as well as functional superiority.  The intricate patterns on the surface and textures formed by their highly developed forging and tempering techniques were used only in Japan.  In the past, the Japanese regarded swords as spiritual symbols of the samurai, temples, and shrines.  Today, Japanese people view swords as cultural art objects made of steel.

The variety in the appearances of swords is closely related to historical events.  Textures, contours, and tempering designs are characteristic of a particular school (Den 伝) of swordsmiths.  This series of lectures discusses the history of each period and then talks about the swordsmith schools active in a particular province at that time.  Therefore, each section starts with the history of that period.   It is necessary to discuss the history to understand the flow of events that shaped the design and style of swords.

Since the subject matter spans many centuries, I will focus more on “ko-to” (古刀), which appeared during the Heian period (平安時代 794 – 1185) until the end of the Sengoku period (戦国時代 16th cent.).  These lectures will be discussed with my illustrations and photos of swords from my father’s collection* and the Sano Museum Catalogue**.  Also, I referenced the book, “Nihon-to no Okite to Tokucho (日本刀の掟と特徴: The Rules and Characteristics of Japanese Sword)” by Mr. Honami Koson.  This is the book my sword instructor, Mori Sensei, used as a textbook for his class.  Other referenced books are “Token no Mikata (刀剣のみかた: The Way to Look at Swords)” by Mr. Yuichi Hiroi, whom I have known since my internship days at the Japanese Sword Museum, as well as “Nihonto Taikan (日本刀大鑑),” “Nihonto Koza (日本刀講座),” and several others.  Detailed information about these reference books can be found in the bibliography.

 Biography

I was born and raised in Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan.  Later, we moved to Kamakura during my late teens.  Currently, I live in Los Angeles.  I graduated from Meiji University with a bachelor’s degree in literature and a curatorship license.  The required internship for the curator license was completed at the Nihon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kyokai (日本美術刀剣保存協会: The Japanese Sword Museum, often referred to as NBTHK) in Tokyo.  I also graduated from California State University, Northridge, earning a bachelor’s degree in economics.

My father owned a manufacturing company that dealt with metal. As a hobby, he collected Japanese swords and other types of Japanese art objects. He was one of the administrators of the Nihon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kyokai. He has long since passed away. 

One of my father’s friends, Mori sensei, who was also the main administrator of the organization, held a Japanese sword study group at his house near mine.       

I joined the study group.   Mori sensei’s class was rare and valuable because he was able to bring in top-quality swords for study materials because of his position at the museum.  The swords we studied were high-quality museum swords, including juyo bunkazai (important cultural properties) and juyo-bijutsuhin (important art objects).  I don’t know how he managed it, but he even brought a national treasure sword.  Note that things were somewhat different over 50 years ago.  Those were the kinds of swords people could only see behind glass display cases. 

I also studied swords with my father, who kept many swords in our house.  Some photos of his swords appear throughout this book. 

*My father took photos of his swords; these were his swords at the time the photos were taken.  After his death, they are no longer in our family’s possession.

**Some photos are from the Sano Museum catalogue.  The Sano Museum has granted permission for their use.