- Joined
- Apr 15, 2020
- Messages
- 213
There's a lot of katanas out there, and I remain amazed at how few of them are any good. All too often, historically accurate Japanese swords are little more than expensive ornaments. Which is fitting, because that's exactly how those swords were used in antiquity. Swords were worn to denote status, rank, and (essentially) one's worth in society.
Only samurai were allowed to wear two swords. Others could wear one and there's the rub: battle swords rarely survived in pristine condition through the ages for us to emulate today, unlike the ornaments which never saw the light of combat, and remained in perfect condition for centuries.
There are two sword styles, however, that are not only combat-oriented, their very design was conceived in battle: the tachi and (later) the shobu zukuri. The translation is linear, as the tachi led to the shobu zukuri.
The tachi is a cavalry sword, deeply curved, and much longer than a standard sword; the better to reach down from the mount and strike a foot soldier dead with. This extra length, and heft, was never an issue because the horse's ass was carrying the weight; not the cavalry man.
Enter the Mongols (the Masters of War.) The first time the Mongols invaded Japan, things were NOT looking good for the natives. The Mongol's superior organization, strategy, and wealth of supplies very nearly ended Japan. However, a freak storm not only destroyed the Mongol's ships and equipment; it completely demoralized them as they no longer had a way back home, and were left with whatever each man had in his pack.
This "Divine Wind" (kamikaze) is the only reason the Japanese survived that first invasion. In assessing the situation after the fact, all discerning minds realized the tachi outperformed every other sword in its ability to cut through the Mongol's superior armor. However, all anyone did was complain about the damned tachi: it was too long, too heavy, and required an inordinate amount of sharpening due to the narrow profile of the blade not allowing for a whole lot of room to bevel. An abrupt, acute beveled angle does not last long in the crash of battle.
The Japanese had a feeling the Mongol's would be back (they were correct), and immediately began fixing the tachi into something the infantry man could use. That's how the shobu zukuri was born. Deeply curved, like a tachi, but shorter, lighter, and with a wider blade with a bevel that practically ran the full width from spine to edge.
The kissaki was eliminated altogether for three reasons: 1) it takes a considerable amount of skill to shape an effective kissaki, inhibiting the production of a large stockpile of blades, 2) while the kissaki allows for excellent snap cuts from maximum distance, those cuts were ineffective against armor 3) deep, body-splitting slashes (which is where the shobu excells) requires one to drive the sword completely through the target, and the blade would typically snag in the target at the kissaki; making a fluid cut more difficult.
The shobu zukuri's massive, damn near full-length bevel was accentuated by the sword makers of Bizen with a "clam shell" edge, which bit so well that the spine of the blade would typically disappear into the target it was cutting; not typical of other katanas.
When the Mongol's returned, just about every Japanese infantry man was armed with a shobu zukuri. This time, the Japanese were winning the day on the battlefield when another storm wiped out the Mongol fleet...AGAIN!
After hundreds of hours of cutting practice, I can attest that nothing cuts like a shobu zukuri. While other blade designs have features of dubious effect, every aspect of the shobu zukuri helps it do one thing and one thing only: slash deeply while driving the whole of the blade through the target, from belly to tip.
Only samurai were allowed to wear two swords. Others could wear one and there's the rub: battle swords rarely survived in pristine condition through the ages for us to emulate today, unlike the ornaments which never saw the light of combat, and remained in perfect condition for centuries.
There are two sword styles, however, that are not only combat-oriented, their very design was conceived in battle: the tachi and (later) the shobu zukuri. The translation is linear, as the tachi led to the shobu zukuri.
The tachi is a cavalry sword, deeply curved, and much longer than a standard sword; the better to reach down from the mount and strike a foot soldier dead with. This extra length, and heft, was never an issue because the horse's ass was carrying the weight; not the cavalry man.
Enter the Mongols (the Masters of War.) The first time the Mongols invaded Japan, things were NOT looking good for the natives. The Mongol's superior organization, strategy, and wealth of supplies very nearly ended Japan. However, a freak storm not only destroyed the Mongol's ships and equipment; it completely demoralized them as they no longer had a way back home, and were left with whatever each man had in his pack.
This "Divine Wind" (kamikaze) is the only reason the Japanese survived that first invasion. In assessing the situation after the fact, all discerning minds realized the tachi outperformed every other sword in its ability to cut through the Mongol's superior armor. However, all anyone did was complain about the damned tachi: it was too long, too heavy, and required an inordinate amount of sharpening due to the narrow profile of the blade not allowing for a whole lot of room to bevel. An abrupt, acute beveled angle does not last long in the crash of battle.
The Japanese had a feeling the Mongol's would be back (they were correct), and immediately began fixing the tachi into something the infantry man could use. That's how the shobu zukuri was born. Deeply curved, like a tachi, but shorter, lighter, and with a wider blade with a bevel that practically ran the full width from spine to edge.
The kissaki was eliminated altogether for three reasons: 1) it takes a considerable amount of skill to shape an effective kissaki, inhibiting the production of a large stockpile of blades, 2) while the kissaki allows for excellent snap cuts from maximum distance, those cuts were ineffective against armor 3) deep, body-splitting slashes (which is where the shobu excells) requires one to drive the sword completely through the target, and the blade would typically snag in the target at the kissaki; making a fluid cut more difficult.
The shobu zukuri's massive, damn near full-length bevel was accentuated by the sword makers of Bizen with a "clam shell" edge, which bit so well that the spine of the blade would typically disappear into the target it was cutting; not typical of other katanas.
When the Mongol's returned, just about every Japanese infantry man was armed with a shobu zukuri. This time, the Japanese were winning the day on the battlefield when another storm wiped out the Mongol fleet...AGAIN!
After hundreds of hours of cutting practice, I can attest that nothing cuts like a shobu zukuri. While other blade designs have features of dubious effect, every aspect of the shobu zukuri helps it do one thing and one thing only: slash deeply while driving the whole of the blade through the target, from belly to tip.
