About Bizen Osafune Cutlery
Bizen Osafune cutlery are knives and cutting tools produced in Osafune-cho, Setouchi City, Okayama Prefecture. Known since the Kamakura period as a production center for 'Bizen swords,' Japanese swords created by Osafune school swordsmiths are counted among the 'Five Greatest Swords.' After the ban on swords in the Edo period, production shifted to agricultural blades and kitchen knives, and today it produces high-quality cutlery inheriting the traditional techniques of Japanese swordmaking. A historic cutlery production area where the lineage of master swordsmiths such as 'Nagamitsu' and 'Kagemitsu' is passed down.
Techniques & Materials
Craft terms are shown in the original Japanese — these are proper names with no standard English equivalents.
Techniques
Materials
Where to see & buy
Workshop names are in Japanese; links go to their official sites.
- 備前長船刀剣博物館 hands-on experience