This tour starts with visiting Kimura family, swordsmiths who continue making swords for 10 generations in Yatsushiro, southern part of Kumamoto. The ancestor of Kimura family was the purveyor swordsmith to Sagara clan which had ruled this area for as long as 700 years. Under the name of swordsmith “Akamatsutarou”, Kanetsugu (9th generation), his brother Kanehiro and his son Kanemitsu (10th generation) are highly regarded by making finest swords of strength, sharpness, clarity of steel and blade. Kanemitsu is also a director of All Japan Swordsmith Association, aggressively working for the development of swordsmith industry while making sophisticated swords.

   First they invite tourists to their workshop and explain how to make a sword by using samples and tools of each process.

 【sword making process】

   When swordsmiths make a sword, they continue quite a tough and complicated work until the dedicated lump of iron becomes the shape of a blade. They repeat the process of heating, forging, and folding the iron an appropriate number of times in order to make it strong and flexible. A sword usually has several thousand layers by folding.

   After forging, a polisher gives the blade its sharpness and defines the tip, ridge line and other features. It often takes a whole year to make a single sword.

 

   After the explanation of the whole process, they will demonstrate some part of production which they are in charge at the time of the visit. There is another master craftsman in this workshop. He is Kaneyuki, Kanetsugu’s second son, a sword polisher. You may also have a chance to see the polishing process.

   Then they will invite tourists to their house, a genuine traditional Japanese house with fabulous ornaments, and show various swords and tell us how to appreciate them.

   They will give each tourist a tablet made of the sword steel with his/her name inscribed before leaving. This inscription is called “Meikiri”, each sword has the inscription of the swordsmith’s name.