Samurai sword

Chōunsai Koretoshi1895), Japan, 1855

iron, metal, wood, silk, 110 cm x 9 cm
The Mesdag Collection, The Hague

This samurai sword was made in one of the best workshops in Japan. Such swords were often worn together with a shorter sword. This combination of weapons was reserved to the samurai class: the military elite that ruled Japan for almost 700 years, until power changed hands in 1868.

Visible among the plaited silk decoration on the hilt is a metal ornament representing a small crab. It is a reference to an ancient legend about the death of samurai warriors during a sea battle in 1185. Even today, people still believe that the crabs in that area are reincarnations of the warriors who drowned in the battle.