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The Art of the Japanese Sword. Yoshindo Yoshihara
Читать онлайн.Название The Art of the Japanese Sword
Год выпуска 0
isbn 9781462909964
Автор произведения Yoshindo Yoshihara
Издательство Ingram
SIZE AND SHAPE OF THE POINT
The size and shape of the sword’s point (kissaki) can vary. A kokissaki is a small point, a chukissaki is a medium-sized point, and an okissaki is a large point. The ikubikissaki is one whose length is the same as the length of the yokote line defining the point.
The fukura is the shape of the curved cutting edge in the point. The fukura can be very full and round (fukura tsuku) or relatively straight (fukura kareru).
MUNE AND NAKAGO SHAPES
The mune is the unsharpened back surface of the sword. The most common style is an iorimune, in which the mune has two sides that come to a peak at the top. A mitsumune has three surfaces: two sides that meet a flat top. A marumune has a rounded surface, and a kakumune is squared-off and flat.
A few of the shapes that the nakago (tang) of a Japanese sword may take.
YASURIME: FILE MARKS ON THE TANG
“Yasurime” refers to the decorative pattern of file marks on the tang of the sword. Individual smiths and schools have characteristic yasurime. The condition of the file marks, along with the shape of the tang and the color of the rust, can provide considerable information about a sword.
HI: GROOVES
Hi (grooves cut into the sword’s surface) usually extend the full length of the sword and run parallel to the back surface. They may have shaped ends, or they may simply be cut into the unpolished part of the nakago without a finished end. They can be wide (bo-bi) or very narrow (soe-bi and tsure-bi). Grooves are usually added for decoration, but they can also lighten a sword or strengthen it by making the blade stiffer.
The name of the hi is followed by the style in which the end nearest to the tang is finished (e.g., “bo-bi/marudome” refers to a straight groove that is finished with a round end just above the tang).
1. BO-BI/KAKINAGASHI
棒樋・掻き流し
A bo-bi is a straight groove. “Kakinagashi” means that the end closest to the nakago is not carefully finished, but simply tapers out below the polished area of the blade on the tang.
2. BO-BI/KAKITOSHI
棒樋・掻き通し
A bo-bi is a straight groove. “Kakitoshi” means that the end closest to the nakago is not carefully finished, but is cut all the way through the full length of the tang.
3. BO-BI with SOE-BI/
MARUDOME 棒樋に添樋・丸止め
This is a straight groove with a smaller parallel companion groove (soe-bi) below the shinogi line. “Marudome” means that both grooves stop above the nakago on the polished portion of the blade and are finished with rounded ends. The soebi runs the length of the blade, but stops before the yokote line and the point.
GROOVE-END SHAPES
4. BO-BI with TSURE-BI/
KAKUDOME 棒樋に連樋・角止め
This is a straight groove with a smaller parallel companion groove. However, in this case, the second groove (tsure-bi) runs beyond the bo-bi near the point of the sword and extends into the shinogiji surface ahead of the larger bo-bi. Both grooves are finished with kakudome, a square end that stops the hi in the polished area of the sword above the nakago.
5. FUTASUJI-BI/KAKUDOME 二筋樋・角止め
Futasuji-bi are twin parallel bo-bi. “Kakudome” means that the grooves are finished with square ends, stopping just above the nakago.
6. NAGINATA-BI with SOE-BI/MARUDOME
薙刀樋に添樋・丸止め
Naginata-bi, the grooves seen on pole-arms (naginata) and sometimes on tanto and katana (as shown here), have a characteristic design. A large bo-bi is finished with a marudome (rounded) end above the tang. The forward end of the bo-bi has a distinctive shape: the side of the hi closest to the cutting edge extends beyond the upper part, so the leading edge of the hi forms an arc. Matching this curve in the forward end of the hi, the upper surface of the blade (shinogi-ji) is beveled sharply toward the mune edge; this beveled surface extends all the way to the tip of the point. A longer soe-bi (companion groove) runs below the bo-bi and extends beyond its leading edge below the beveled part of the shinogi-ji.
BOSHI: THE SHAPE OF THE HAMON ON THE POINT
The boshi is the hamon in the point area. There are a number of styles; individual smiths and schools used characteristic boshi. Schools also changed their boshi styles in different eras.
Three different styles of sword with different points are shown on this page.
At left is a hira-zukuri blade. It has flat sides and no defined point area. The blade has a flat surface from the top of the tang to the tip.
At center is a shinogi-zukuri blade. The point area is defined by the yokote line separating the point area from the body of the blade.
At right is an osoraku-zukuri tanto. It has a very large point that covers about half of the blade’s length. The point area is defined by a yokote line, and is polished to contrast with the body of the blade.
EXAMINING THE HAMON
One of the most singular features of the Japanese sword is its hamon, the visible pattern of the hardened edge. After forging, the swordsmith coats the sword with clay, heats it, and then quenches it in water to produce the uniquely patterned edge. The hamon, which is composed of a form of steel called martensite, is far harder than the body of the sword. A properly made, functional Japanese sword must always have a hamon.
The hamon depends on the condition of the sword. If a sword is in poor condition, or has an old polish, or has been polished many times over the centuries, the hamon may be nearly or com pletely invisible. It may even be absent altogether.
Even if the hamon is in good condition and the sword has a good polish, the hamon might be difficult to see and appreciate. As mentioned earlier, the sword must be clean, examined under the proper light, and held at the correct angle relative to the light, with the sword pointed just below the focused light source. Under these conditions, the line defining the hamon will be visible near the reflected light source on the blade.
Due to the significance