wooden mallet is used to tap on the tsuka-nuki, which extends up along the polished blade to protect it. Several gentle blows will loosen the tang enough to remove it from the hilt.
Sometimes a habaki is wedged very tightly on the tang of the sword and cannot be removed. In this situation, the bare tang is held in one hand while its base is tapped with a wooden hammer or mallet (using a steel hammer could bend or damage the tang). Several strikes with the mallet will usually loosen the habaki.
If the tang is set in the wooden hilt very tightly, it will be hard to remove. In this case, a Japanese tool called a “tsuka-nuki” is used to remove the sword from the hilt. This tool is a special punch that is shaped to fit over the wooden hilt, with a flat place where it can be struck with a hammer. It also has a high projection on one side to prevent the hammer from hitting the blade. With the blade held fairly upright at an angle of 30 to 45 degrees from vertical, strike the tsuka-nuki with a wooden mallet. The impact from the mallet will loosen the tang, driving it a short distance out of the hilt. Once it has begun to move, it is easy to grasp the top of the tang and remove it from the hilt.
Another common problem is that the habaki fits too tightly on the tang and will not slide off readily. In this case, holding the bare tang of the sword below the habaki, with the blade almost parallel to the ground, gently strike the end of the tang with a wooden hammer (a metal hammer should never be used to hit any part of the sword, as it can deform or damage the metal). After a few gentle strikes with the wooden hammer, the habaki will become loose and begin to move down the tang. At this point, it can be removed by sliding it off the sword.
This warrior, girded for battle, wears a long tachi sword slung from his belt with the cutting edge down. From an Edo-period kakejiku (scroll). Private collection.
SWORD TERMINOLOGY
The Japanese people have long appreciated the Japanese sword both as a functional essential weapon and as an object of art. Along with methods of handling and maintaining swords, a wealth of specific Japanese-language terms used to describe a sword’s features has developed over the course of history. There are no exact equivalents for many of these terms in English. The terms that follow are unique to Japanese.
1. The hamon is a visible, patterned band of hardened steel along the edge of the sword. It is this feature that gives the Japanese sword its superior cutting ability.
2. The term “sugata” refers to the shape of a blade. Generally speaking, the Japanese sword is single-edged, curved, and relatively thin, with a clearly defined point. However, Japanese swords come in a variety of shapes.
3. The words “jigane” and “jitetsu” refer to the appearance of the surface steel, its texture and color, and the pattern thereon. Traditionally forged Japanese steel is not bright or reflective: the steel usually appears dark, with a clear pattern visible on its surface.
For definitions of numerous other sword-related Japanese terms, please refer to page 27.
This painting by Yoshihiko Sasama depicts an armored Nanbokucho-period (fourteenth century) samurai wielding a very long sword. Private collection.
PARTS OF THE SWORD
A. SAKIKASANE 先重ね Thickness of the blade at the point
B. MOTOKASANE 元重ね Thickness of the blade at its base
C. KISSAKI NAGASA 切先長さ Length of the point
D. SAKIHABA 先幅 Width of the blade at the point
E. MUNE 棟 Unsharpened back surface of the blade
F. MOTOHABA 元幅 Width of the blade at its base
G. MUNEMACHI 棟区 Notch at the top of the tang where the mune surface begins
H. HAMACHI 刃区 Notch at the top of the tang where the cutting edge begins
I. FUKURA ふくら Curvature of the cutting edge within the point
J. BOSHI 帽子 Hamon on the point area
K. YOKOTE 横手 Line defining and setting off the point from the body of the sword
L. KOSHINOGI 小鎬 Portion of the shinogi in the point area (above the yokote line)
M. MITSUKADO 三ﾂ角 Spot where the yokote line, the edge of the blade, and the edge of the point meet
N. SHINOGI MITSUKADO 鎬三ﾂ角 Spot where the shinogi, koshinogi, and yokote lines meet
O. SHINOGI-JI 鎬地 Surface of the blade between the shinogi and the mune
P. SHINOGI 鎬 The well-defined line running along the length of the blade at the thickest part of the sword (present on shinogi-zukuri–style blades)
Q. JI 地 Steel surface of the sword
R. HA 刃先 Hardened steel along the edge area
S. HASAKI 刃先 Sharpened cutting edge of the sword
T. NIOIGUCHI 匂口 Clearly defined visible line separating the hardened cutting edge from the softer body of the sword
U. ASHI 足 Projections of the nioiguchi line that extend toward the edge of the blade
V. HACHO 刃長 Straight line used to define the length of the blade
W. SORI 反り Measure of the curvature of the sword
X. ZENCHO 全長 Measure of the full length of the sword including the tang (hacho measurements apply to the blade only)
Y. NAKAGO NAGASA 中心長さ Length of the nakago (tang)
Z. MEKUGIANA 目釘穴 Hole in the tang for the mekugi (bamboo rivet used to secure the sword in the hilt)
AA. MEI 銘 Inscription on the tang of the sword (usually the smith’s name, but often includes other information as well)
LONGSWORD STYLES
SHINOGI-ZUKURI 鎬造り
A sword with a shinogi (ridge line) running along its entire length where the blade is thickest. Has a yokote line and a well-defined point.
HIRA-ZUKURI 平造り A flat-sided blade with no shinogi and no yokote line or defined point area.
JOKOTO or CHOKUTO 直刃
(MOROKIRIHA-ZUKURI 両切刃造り)
