| Publications of the
NCJSC: Publications currently available
from the NCJSC :
"A Brief History of Japanese Sword Fittings Artisans". An English
translation of the "Hompō Sōken Kinkō Ryakushi", by Wada Tsunashirō, translated
from Japanese by Henri L. Joly and Alan L. Harvie. 229 pages, including a 27
page alphabetized index of artisans. |
|
| "Tsuba, An Aesthetic Study", by Kazutaro Torigoye and
Robert Haynes, from the "Tsuba Geijutsu-Ko" of Kazutaro Torigoye, 295 pages.
|
|
| "NTHK Novice Course". English translation by Dr.
Gordon Robson, Reprinted by the NCJSC 1990-92, 228 pages. New members receive a copy
with their first issue of the newsletter. |
|
| "Kinko Meikan Translation", English translation by John
Yumoto and Alan Harvie, of the 1974 edition of the Kinko Meikan, by Senichiro
Masumoto and Kenichi Kokubo. 197 pages. |
|
|
|
Now available:
NTHK Novice Course:
This
"Novice Course" on Japanese swords (Nihonto) was first written as a series
of articles by Yoshikawa Kōen
sensei for the Nihon Tōken
Hozon Kai (NTHK). Dr. Gordon Robson translated the text into English for
the Northern California Japanese Sword Club (NCJSC) and organized the
material into book form in 1990-1992. The second edition, from 2022, is a
digital remastering of the book which has improved print and image quality
and incorporates some minor updates by Dr. Robson. The third edition, from
2023, has rescanned oshigata.
A
little over half the book introduces the reader to the
Gokaden
(Five Traditions) since, as the author tells us,
"Every
Nihonto which has come down to us today has its roots in the Gokaden, and
each of these tradition?s characteristics are present in the style of work
found in these blades."
The
rest of the book includes a glossary of sword terms (in Japanese and
English) and chapters on the principles of sword polishing and making
oshigata. Also included is a chapter on the NTHK shinsa (screening) system,
explaining the point system and how to read "papers."
Order directly from
Lulu
Now available:
"New Contributions to the
Study of the History of the Japanese Sword Guard":
See
"A Brief History of Japanese Sword Fittings Artisans"
above.
This book is a translation of an article which first appeared
in the Bulletin de la Societe Franco-Japonaise de Paris, Vol. XXXIII, April,
1914.
From the Introduction:
As has been written before, the historical study of the fittings for the
Japanese sword is but one hundred years old. The first fifty years of this study
was conducted, for the most part, by Akiyama Kyusaku. The New Contributions to
the Study of the History of the Japanese Sword Guard by M. le Marquis de Tressan
was, and still is, of great value to the Western student. As you can see from
the opening paragraph of this paper, it is essentially the translation of Hompō Sōken Kinkō Ryakushi by Wada Tsunashirō (see "A Brief History of Japanese Sword Fittings Artisans"
above) which, in turn, is based on the studies of Akiyama Kyōaku, who
was continuing his own research at that time. What is of interest is the fact
that the knowledge that was formed in the last twenty or thirty years of the
nineteenth century arrived in Europe almost at the same time it was published in
Japan. Up until the last few years we had no idea that the collectors and
students in the West had such close contact with Akiyama and other experts of
that day. When you read this paper you will see that not only did they have
excellent translations of the current knowledge regarding the study of fittings
in Japan, but that they were in regular correspondence with Akiyama and the
other experts of his day.
This translation was published by the Northern California Japanese Sword Club in
1996 and digitally remastered in 2023.
56 pages
Order directly from
Lulu
NCJSC out-of-print publications:
 | "Chronological Table of Koto Smiths", Copy of a
6 foot handmade scroll by John Yumoto |
| "Genealogy of Satsuma Smiths", copies of three
scrolls by John Yumoto |
| "NCJSC Token Taikai '76 Lectures", 191 pages. |
| "Imperial Japanese Daggers - 1883 to 1945", 48 pages. |
| "New Contributions to the Study of the History of the Japanese Sword
Guard", by M. le Marquis de Tressan, Translated by Christine Dispas, Ph.
D., produced by Alan L. Harvey and Paul R. Allman for the NCJSC, November
1996, 63 Pages. |
| "Nihonto Newsletter", by Albert
Yamanaka, over 1900 pages in four volumes.
(This publication is delayed temporarily while we work on new typesetting.
First volume (Koto) publication estimated in late 2024.] |
NCJSC Newsletter "To-Ron"
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