With its thick gatefold pages, black background, gleaming sabres with exquisite grapevine design and applied gold lacquer, this is a magnificent book to behold. It showcases masterpieces by Japanese artisans with a glossary of specialised terms and an informative commentary as we discover ten ancient Japanese swords in museum collections reproduced in all their splendid detail on double pages with gatefolds plus 45 additional Japanese swords and 35 accessories and handles. There have been many smiths living around the imperial palace producing swords in Kyoto since the oldest times and the most prestigious of these was the Awataguchi School which began with six brothers. The tachi on page 16-17 was a treasure of the Tottori Clan, Ikeda family, originally the blade was approximately three shaku long, but it was later shortened to make it more wieldable. Explanations of the inscriptions and motifs such as a skull in the field equals resolute acceptance of death or the gissha ox carriage loaded with straw rice bags, the rabbit and bamboo grass design, the moon, stream and clover, characterful monkeys carrying objects or a tiny baby in gold against the black fur of the mother. And from nature lotus leaves and vegetables. There is beautiful inlaid mother-of-pearl kiri mon, a black leather-ito and a black lacquered tachi koshirae, scabbards and most of all gleaming sharp blades. With text in English and Japanese, a beautifully designed large flexicover with French translation booklet included and inserted in a paper slipcase.
Published price: £60
Bibliophile price: £25
