Samurai
arms and equipment are widely recognized as masterpieces in steel,
silk, and lacquer. This extensively illustrated volume is published in
conjunction with the first comprehensive exhibition devoted to the arts
of the samurai. It includes the finest examples of swords—the spirit of
the samurai—as well as sword mountings and fittings, armor and helmets,
saddles, banners, and paintings. The objects in the catalogue, drawn
entirely from public and private collections in Japan, feature more than
100 officially designated national treasures and important cultural
properties. Dating from the 5th to the 19th century, these majestic
works offer a complete picture of samurai culture and its unique blend
of the martial and the refined.
Many of the greatest Japanese blade makers are represented in this volume, from the earliest koto
("old sword") masters such as Yasuie (12th century) and Tomomitsu (14th
century) to the Edo-period smiths Nagasone Kotetsu and Kiyomaro. These
blades, cherished as much for their beauty as for their cutting
effectiveness, were equipped with elaborate hilts and scabbards prized
for their exquisite craftsmanship and materials, including silk,
rayskin, gold, lacquer, and alloys unique to Japan, such as shakudo and shibuichi.
Japanese armor is also fully surveyed, from the rarest iron armor of
the Kofun period (5th century) to the inventive ceremonial helmets made
toward the end of the age of the samurai.
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