You never know what’s in the attic
In 1939, the Shinto Kasuga Taisha shrine in Nara was undergoing renovations and, in a ceiling, was found a rare, 12th Century katana tachi (thanks, Tom!) which had been dedicated to the shrine. Now, the vintage sword has been re-polished by a master and is going on display. And, it is a very interesting blade:
From Japan Forward
The accompanying Kuro-urushi- yamagane (black lacquered mountain iron) tachi mountings are thought to date from the fourteenth century. The sword is believed to have been dedicated to the shrine sometime during the Nanboku-cho (1336-1392) and early Muromachi (1336-1573) periods.
The blade is unsigned, but as it bears a close resemblance to the famous Doji-giri sword in the Tokyo National Museum by the Ko-Hoki mastersmith Yasutsuna, and it is thought that it could be his work as well. The Doji-giri is known historically as one of the Five Greatest Swords Under Heaven. Motoki Sakai of the Tokyo National Museum said that the sword discovered at Kasuga Taisha “is a very important example of work of the period in excellent condition.”
Pretty cool find! One slight infelicity, though– that’s a tachi, not a katana. It’s too long to be a true katana (look at the tang to blade ratio) and the curve of the blade is different. Tachi were optimized for fighting from horseback and katana became more common once samurai started fighting predominantly on foot during the later Muromachi period. Tachi were still made for ceremonial and religious purposes even after the katana became the more common battlefield weapon.