The Yamato Tradition
From a meeting of the South Florida Token Study Group - May 4, 2003

The Yamato Tradition is considered to be the oldest seen in japanese swordmaking. It is named for the province where this school originated, on the island of Honshu. The earliest swords known to have been made in Japan (rather than brought over from China or Korea) are attributed to Yamato smiths. These blades display a transitional shape between the chokuto (archaic straight form) and the later-seen shinogi-zukuri form having curvature. In this early period, the best known example is the kogarasu-maru ("Little Crow Sword"). In this piece, the upper half has a diamond cross-section and the lower features a defined ridgeline with flat-sides. While unsigned, this sword has been attributed to the Yamato smith Amakuni, the earliest name in japanese sword history. It is believed to date from the late Nara period in the 8th century.

The groups working in Yamato were often closely associated with temples in the city of Nara (imperial capital of Japan until this moved to Kyoto in 795 AD). They frequently forged swords on the temple grounds, to be used by the resident buddist priesthood. The first Yamato group, the Ko-Senjuin (early Senjuin) school forged swords for the priests of Kodaiji temple. Swordmaking in Yamato flourished through the Kamakura period, during which time 4 other important schools developed: Hosho, Taima, Shikkake, and Tegai. Distinctive features are seen among their works that became representative of the Yamato work-style:

• Hada (forging pattern) which includes some Masama Hada (straight grain).
• A Hamon (hardened edge) that is based on Suguha (straight line), having many subtle variations.
• A Hamon (hardened edge) that is composed of ko-nie (small crystals of martensite).
• A shinogi (defined ridge-line) that is raised, creating a more diamond-shaped cross-section.

Yamato blades usually exhibit these features to some degree, though each sub-group had its own unique characteristics. Hosho may be considered the most classical Yamato school, having a hada (forging pattern) of almost pure masame (straight grain). Shikkake blades usually show masame hada most prominently along the edge section, even if it is not present elsewhere. Taima works closely resemble the examples from the early Soshu smiths, and are often misattributed to Soshu Yukimitsu (the father of Masamune). A swordsmith from the Tegai group named Kaneuji went to study with Masamune and later founded Mino swordmaking and the famous Naoe Shizu school. Yamato swordsmaking spread to other areas as well, influencing the work of smiths at Bingo Kokubunji temple in Bizen, who founded the Ko-Mihara school. Additional Yamato schools included Uda, Kanabo, and Nio among many others...