Aug 28, 2026

A visit to a sword-smith workshop in the northern part of Kyoto

Tags: buying guide, Iaito, japanese sword, katana, newly forged, samurai sword, shinsakuto, swordsmith

A two-hour drive north of Kyoto City, Japan’s ancient capital, will bring you to the northern most part of Kyoto Prefecture which faces the Sea of Japan. Here, a small city known as Kyotango is nestled by the sea. Blessed...

Aug 28, 2026

The Manufacturing of Japanese Style Swords Abroad

Tags: antique, appreciation, bushido, buying guide, fake, gansaku, Iaito, imitation, japanese sword, katana, newly forged, samurai, samurai sword, sheathing, shinsakuto, sword structure, swordsmith, tsukuri-komi, uchigatana

What are Japanese swords? Simply put, Japanese swords or katana are made by a unique Japanese blacksmithing method and are assumed to have been crafted in Japan, but a Japanese sword cannot merely be characterized as a weapon. It has...

Aug 28, 2026

Hamon: An Artistic Pattern That Reveals the Aesthetic Sense of The Swordsmith

Tags: antique, appreciation, buying guide, hamon, Iaito, japanese sword, katana, newly forged, samurai sword, shinsakuto

What is Hamon? Even those seeing a Japanese sword for the first time are captivated by the vividness of the hamon (blade pattern). The hamon refers to the part that is tempered with extra heat, so it is actual proof...

Aug 28, 2026

Why Choose a Newly Made Japanese Sword?

Tags: appreciation, buying guide, japanese sword, katana, newly forged, samurai sword, shinsakuto

-Helping to maintain traditional Japanese sword making- Nihonto literally means a sword made in Japan by a unique Japanese blacksmithing method and is also known as Samurai sword or Katana in other countries. The origin of the Japanese sword dates...