The process of creating traditional Japanese military swords is not really a process – it is an art. These swords are made using an intricate process developed by the Chinese and improved by the Japanese. The method involves an extraordinary amount of labor, and frequently, several workers would create swords through an assembly-line like process. The sword maker must heat, fold and hammer the metal until it reaches the desired thickness.
The steel used in Japanese military swords is thought to be the best for the creation of these deadly blades. Folding and hammering the metal enabled the steel to reach its strongest and most resilient state. Air bubbles were beaten out and the composition of the steel was turned uniform, thereby eliminating points of weakness.
Japanese military swords were only allowed to have a single edge; the dull side was for support. Up until the onset of World War II, the majority of Japanese military swords were made by hand. With industrialization and a need to mass produce, swords created during WWII were done so by machine.
It is interesting to note the quality of these blades drastically decreased as the progression of the war gradually turned against Japan. High quality military swords created at the beginning of the fighting were replaced with low quality swords made with poor materials as combat came to an end. American forces in the Pacific Ocean had created a stranglehold on Japan’s ability to obtain resources and the quality of these weapons reflected it.
Today, with the modern weapons available to soldiers, military swords are no longer needed for combat. However, modern armies still produce swords for many of their troops as part of tradition. There are still a handful of traditional Japanese military sword makers that work to keep the art alive.
