Bizen Swords

The ancient province of Kibi (of which Bizen was the easternmost region; now Okayama prefecture) possessed excellent ironmaking technology, which helped make Kibi into a powerful state. The region is blessed with all the vital ingredients needed for Japanese sword making: iron sand, water, and charcoal of Japanese red pine, which has excellent thermal efficiency. Osafune district in the city of Setouchi, where the present day sword museum is located, has been renowned across Japan as the production site of quality swords since the Kamakura period (1185–1333).

During the latter half of the Heian  period (794–1185) the Minamoto clan and the Taira clan emerged as the two major warrior clans, with the tachi sword rapidly becoming their weapon of choice. More and more swordsmiths producing various tachi sword styles began to appear in the province of Bizen, which is also the location for quality iron sand. After the passing of Minamoto no Yoritomo (1147–1199) in the Kamakura period, Empoeror Gotoba (1180–1239) promoted swordmaking in his bid to counter the Hōjō clan. With the Hōjō clan winning the Jōkyū War (1221) and seizing power, the techniques of making tachi swords — which were the main weapons in these battles — developed further, reaching a pinnacle in the history of Japan’s swords. With the changes in of warfare methods taking place during the latter half of the Kamakura period (1185–1333) and the Nanbokuchō period of Northern and Southern Courts (1333–1392), infantry replaced cavalry and the lighter, shorter uchigatana (katana) swords also became complementary to the long heavy tachi swords. After the outbreak of the Ōnin War (1467–1477) uchigatana sword became the main weapon and demand for this type of sword peaked. To satisfy this demand, many swordsmiths begain residing at Osafune; it is said that there were so many of them that area boasted “thousands of smith shops” between Kamakura and Muromachi (1392–1573) periods. 

The museum first opened in 1987 as Bizen Osafune Museum, but reopened in 2006 as Bizen Osafune Sword Museum to focus its exhibits on Bizen swords. The museum offers visitors a chance to see live demonstrations of the making of Japanese swords as well, making it the only museum in the world that allows its visitors to not only appreciate famous swords on display, but also to see with their own eyes how beautiful Japanese swords are made with exacting traditional craftsmanship.

The blade into whose forging the sword master has poured all his soul and energy is polished by a sword polisher known as a togishi. The blade becomes sharp and shines after it has been polished.

Because Japanese sword sheath is a practical item, it is vital that it can withstand long use. It is also important to make the final finish beautiful. A graceful sword mounting requires between two and three months of great labor to finish.

The same steel used to forge the sword is used for the tsuba (guard). The making of the tsuba includes design tracing, carving, and polishing. To add color to the tsuba, metals such as gold, silver or copper are inlaid into intricate designs.

The museum was in the news when the The Evangelion and Japanese Swords Exhibition opened at the museum in 2012 and it received 47,000 visitors in two months. Normally, even special exhibitions at the museum only attract about 5,000 visitors, so this number was tremendous. Of the six exhibitions shown a year, three are special exhibitions, and special events or exhibitions oriented toward young people are held in summer. The museum has also held exhibitions related to games and anime, such as Sengoku Basara (“Devil Kings”) and Sengoku Musō (“Samurai Warriors”).