- Joined
- Nov 1, 2001
- Messages
- 33
I thought you might like some history about Seki City, Japan, where some of your precious Spydercos are made.
Seki City has a reputation as first-in-its-class production center for cutlery. It dates back about 780 years. In the middle of the 13th century during Japan's Kamakura Period a famous swordsmith master named Motoshige settled in Seki, drawn by its ideal natural features and resources including quality earth for tempering blades, pine-wood or "yakiba-tsuchi" charcoal in abundant supply, and a strategic central location at the convergence of two main waterways. By the Muromachi Period there were more than 300 swordsmiths in Seki, and their swords had become renowned nationwide as effective weapons that neither bent nor broke.
When private possession of swords was prohibited by the Government in 1876, many arti-sans gave up sword making and naturally progressed to the business of knife making. Seki cutlery today is known for its superior quality, and is highly praised the world over; within the industry it's often said "Solingen in the West and Seki in the East".
The city itself celebrates a "Cutlery Festival" every October. The Seki Chamber of Commerce and Industry offers sightseers a sales outlet, as does the local Hamono Kaikan (Cutlery Hall). The Seki City Industrial Promotion Center exhibits articles detailing Seki's history and industry, it is aim being to promote the cutlery industry and preserve Seki's traditional Japanese sword technology, offering demonstrations of old style Japanese sword forging regularly, as tourist attractions.
To think, I've lived so close to it, but never have gone, and now I don't have enough time. Shimota!
Anybody know about the history of SFO? Which knives are made there? How many people work there producing knives? Can we visit and watch them being made? Do I have to buy the book to get the whole history?
Hmmmmm. New Spyder or Spyder-book. Damn decisions. Might as well get both.
Ian
Seki City has a reputation as first-in-its-class production center for cutlery. It dates back about 780 years. In the middle of the 13th century during Japan's Kamakura Period a famous swordsmith master named Motoshige settled in Seki, drawn by its ideal natural features and resources including quality earth for tempering blades, pine-wood or "yakiba-tsuchi" charcoal in abundant supply, and a strategic central location at the convergence of two main waterways. By the Muromachi Period there were more than 300 swordsmiths in Seki, and their swords had become renowned nationwide as effective weapons that neither bent nor broke.
When private possession of swords was prohibited by the Government in 1876, many arti-sans gave up sword making and naturally progressed to the business of knife making. Seki cutlery today is known for its superior quality, and is highly praised the world over; within the industry it's often said "Solingen in the West and Seki in the East".
The city itself celebrates a "Cutlery Festival" every October. The Seki Chamber of Commerce and Industry offers sightseers a sales outlet, as does the local Hamono Kaikan (Cutlery Hall). The Seki City Industrial Promotion Center exhibits articles detailing Seki's history and industry, it is aim being to promote the cutlery industry and preserve Seki's traditional Japanese sword technology, offering demonstrations of old style Japanese sword forging regularly, as tourist attractions.
To think, I've lived so close to it, but never have gone, and now I don't have enough time. Shimota!
Anybody know about the history of SFO? Which knives are made there? How many people work there producing knives? Can we visit and watch them being made? Do I have to buy the book to get the whole history?
Hmmmmm. New Spyder or Spyder-book. Damn decisions. Might as well get both.
Ian
