 Swords
and Steel
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The best swords in the world are said to be made in Japan. From ancient
times, this has been true, and the best of the best have been thought
to come from the Izumo District of the Sanin Area. The reasons for such
high quality work include the facts that the iron sand found in the Izumo
District is very pure - iron made from this sand is exceptionally strong
- and the Tatara Furnace!
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In ancient times, the Tatara Buki, the furnace used to melt the iron
sand, was made of dried mud. Tatara came from the Chinese word, and came
to mean the hut in which the steel-making process was conducted. Buki
meant the bellows used to make the fire hotter. In the Edo period (1600
- 1867), a typical furnace measured one meter deep, 2.7 meters long, and
90 centimeters wide. The walls were from nine to 15 centimeters thick.
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When the Tatara Furnace was introduced into Japan from China and Korea
in the Nara period (710 - 794), hand-bellows were used to increase the
fire's temperature. The Japanese improved this process by inventing the
foot-bellows, which were more efficient. The iron produced by these early
Japanese was used to make farm tools, carpentry tools, tea ceremony kettles,
and many other useful objects, including the world-famous Japanese sword.
The furnace was used continuously, with various developments added, until
the end of the 19th century. During World War I, the shortage of steel
in Japan caused a return to the Tatara process, but after that, it almost
disappeared.
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Probably the oldest operational Tatara Furnace in existence today can
be found in Yoshida. Yoshida's Tatara Furnace is about 600 years old.
In Yokota, steel is still made using this furnace. Three of these furnaces
were built by the Japanese Sword Preservation Society to provide sword-makers
with traditional steel. The old legend of Susanoo no Mikoto killing a
huge eight-headed snake and cutting off its heads and its eight tails
as well, started the history of iron in Japan. Susanoo found a beautiful,
iron sword in one of the middle tails of the snake and named it Murakumo.
He gave this sword to Amaterasu the Sun Goddess. She gave it to Ninigi
no Mikoto, as the third item of the Three Imperial Regalia.
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The name of this sword was later changed to Kusanagi, according to an
ancient legend. It is said that the sword stands for lightning and strength.
How I love the old Japanese stories! The bronze and iron ages appeared
at about the same time in Japan. If we want to date Susanoo, it would
be over 2,000 years ago. Since he was Amaterasu's brother, it also dates
all Japanese legends from this period. Seriously considering this, a National
Foundation Day of February 11, 660 B.C. is obviously unlikely. A much
more practical date would be 660 A.D., after the Taika Reform, which helped
unite Japan.
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