Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Rasp with visible tang going into the handle Two sides of a tang (nakago) on a Japanese katana. A tang or shank is the back portion of the blade component of a tool where it extends into stock material or connects to a handle – as on a knife, sword, spear, arrowhead, chisel, file, coulter, pike, scythe, screwdriver, etc. [1] [2] One can classify various tang designs by their appearance, by ...
The swordsmiths of the Fukuoka-ichimonji School traditionally inscribed only the Japanese kanji character "Ichi" (一, one) on the tang of their swords as their signature. Among the forged swords, Imperial chrysanthemum emblem was engraved on the tang of the sword which the Emperor Go-toba cooled with water, which was the process of making the ...
nagamaki (長巻, "long wrapping") – a large sword with a usually katana-sized blade and a very long handle of about equal length. Successor design to the ōdachi/nodachi. naginata (薙刀, 長刀) – polearm wielded in large sweeping strokes. Typically with a wide blade, long tang and without yokote. It often has a distinctive carved groove.
Tachi by Norishige ca. 1300 CE, made ō-suriage (greatly shortened) during the Edo period for use as a "katana" by cutting off the original tang and reforming it higher up the cutting edge. What generally differentiates the different swords is their length. Japanese swords are measured in units of shaku. Since 1891, the modern Japanese shaku is ...
The katana belongs to the nihontō family of swords, and is distinguished by a blade length (nagasa) of more than 2 shaku, approximately 60 cm (24 in). [9] Katana can also be known as dai or daitō among Western sword enthusiasts, although daitō is a generic name for any Japanese long sword, literally meaning "big sword". [10]
Katana, length 66.4 cm, curvature 1.5 cm, bottom width 2.8 cm, shinogi-zukuri, iori-mune, and chū-kissaki nobi [4] (see also Glossary of Japanese swords). The front side contains a sign of Muramasa and a mantra sign myōhō renge kyō (妙法蓮華経) (a mantra from Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō or the Lotus Sutra of Nichiren Buddhism). [4]
Similar to the katana, naginata often have a round handguard between the blade and shaft, when mounted in a koshirae (furniture). The 30 cm to 60 cm (11.8 inches to 23.6 inches) naginata blade is forged in the same manner as traditional Japanese swords. The blade has a long tang which is inserted in the shaft.
Comparison between the tangs (nakago) of a katana (left) and tachi (right). The signature (銘, mei) on the tachi tang was inscribed so it was always on the side of the tang facing outward as either sword was worn. With a few exceptions, katana and tachi can be distinguished from each other, if signed, by the location of the signature (mei) on ...