Fudō Masamune
One of the few swords securely attributed to Masamune, engraved with the deity Fudō. It once belonged to the Tokugawa family.
The hamon – the white temper line along the edge – is both technique and art.
Masamune was a swordsmith active in Sagami Province, near the city of Kamakura, in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. He is considered Japan’s most famous swordsmith. At the same time, very few swords can be securely attributed to him, and for a period in the late 19th century some scholars even questioned whether he had existed at all. Today he is considered a historical figure, even though much about him is legend. According to tradition, several of the finest smiths of the following generations were his pupils, the so-called Ten Great Disciples, but the list was compiled much later and is unreliable.
Fudō Masamune is a short sword, a tantō, with a blade of about 25 centimetres. It takes its name from an engraving of the deity Fudō Myōō on the blade. Fudō is a wrathful protective deity in Buddhism who carries a sword to cut through ignorance and evil forces. The sword is one of very few signed swords attributed to Masamune.
The blade is almost straight and has a distinct temper line, the hamon, along the edge. The steel shows a fine grain pattern that arose as it was folded and forged. Connoisseurs admire Masamune’s swords for the glittering crystals in the hardened zone, known as nie, and for the dark, winding lines in the steel.
Japanese swords were made from a special steel, tamahagane, produced in clay furnaces from iron sand. The smith folded the steel many times to even out the carbon content and remove slag. Before hardening, the blade was coated with clay, thicker on the back and thinner at the edge. When the blade was quenched in water, the edge became hard while the back remained tough. This is what creates the hamon.
The sword has a long history of ownership. According to tradition, it was owned by the warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi before passing to the Tokugawa clan, which ruled Japan during the Edo period. It was subsequently kept by the Owari branch of the family and is now in the Tokugawa Art Museum in Nagoya.
Swords had a special status in Japan. They were not only weapons but also status objects and gifts exchanged between powerful men. Swords by famous smiths were given names and often received certificates of authenticity. During the Edo period Masamune’s swords were among the most sought after, and his name became almost synonymous with the perfect sword.
Today Japanese swords are regarded as works of art and are judged by the shape of the blade, the pattern of the steel and the beauty of the temper line. Fudō Masamune is designated an Important Cultural Property. Masamune has become a legendary figure in popular culture, and his name appears in films, games and comics.