Source: Antiques Roadshow: "Three Japanese Swords"
A full Teacher's Guide accompanies this video on the Antiques Roadshow Web site.
Funding for ANTIQUES ROADSHOW is provided by Liberty Mutual and Subaru. Additional funding is provided by public television viewers.
In 1603, the Tokugawa family came to power as the rulers of Japan. Three samurai swords worn during this time, also known as the Edo period, are discussed by Asian Arts appraiser Dessa Goddard in this video produced for Antiques Roadshow. The swords, that have been in the United States since 1898, include a daisho set: a katana and a wakizashi, two swords mounted together and worn by a mid-level samurai. In addition to the set there is a court sword, bearing symbols that make it a highly unusual piece.
Download OnlyFor samurai, or military nobility, in pre-industrial Japan, a sword was more than a weapon: It was an extension of the soul. Two of the swords in this collection form a daisho (meaning "big and small") set, comprised of a katana (which means "long sword") and wakizashi (which means "side arm"). Samurai treated katana swords, which are curved and single edged, with great reverence. They gave them names and, when male children turned 13, held ceremonies in which young men received their first katana swords and armor, along with adult names and samurai status.
The wakizashi — a short sword with a curved blade — was a samurai's "honor weapon" and was always with him; he would even sleep with it under his pillow. When a samurai entered a house, he was expected to leave his armor and weapons outside, but it was traditional for him to keep his wakizashi at his side for protection. According to the appraiserAn expert who assesses the value, quality, and authenticity of works of art or other objects. the third sword in this set is highly unusual: Symbols on this court sword, including the Tokugawa crest, provide evidence suggesting that it was carried by a samurai who was exceptionally close to the ruling family.
Samurai operated under a code of ethics known as Bushido, or the "way of the warrior." Central to this set of values was the importance of living — and dying — with honor. In addition to honor, six other core virtues are associated with Bushido. These include courage, respect, honesty, loyalty, compassion, and integrity.
All three of these swords were worn during the Tokugawa period, which began in 1603, when the Tokugawa family came to power as the rulers of Japan. The Tokugawa were shoguns, or military dictators, who governed in place of the emperors. (This era is also known as the Edo period, after the new capital city of Edo, which was established by the Tokugawa shoguns and which is now Tokyo.) The Tokugawa government imposed a strict new social order to Japan. The role of the samurai — and of their swords — changed dramatically, as samurai were forced to choose between relinquishing their weapons and becoming peasants or keeping their swords, moving to the city where their feudal lord lived, and becoming aristocratic bureaucrats, administrators, courtiers, or military leaders. By the time the Tokugawa era ended in 1868, daisho swords had become symbols of power rather than weapons used in warfare.
GUEST: Well, my grandfather was a member of Company H of the North Dakota Volunteers. He went to the Philippines during the Spanish-American War. And my understanding is that he and some of his other officer friends went to Japan on the way home, and he purchased these three swords in Japan and brought them back. This has been in our family ever since I can remember. These two he gave to his sister, and her daughter gave them back to me, because she had no children. She just thought they should all stay together.
DESSA GODDARD, Appraiser, Bonhams & Butterfields: So these have been in your family's possession since around 19...
GUEST: No, 1898.
GODDARD: 1898?
GUEST: Yeah.
GODDARD: That's unusual, because most of the stories that we hear about Japanese swords were that they were brought back during World War II.
GUEST: This one and some other swords were up in the attic of the house. My cousin and I played with them— sword-fought, you know, as children do.
GODDARD: That's great. Well, what you have here is a daisho set. The top two swords, a katana and a wakizashi, are mounted together and worn by a mid-level samurai during the Edo period, between, uh, 1600 and 1868. They're mounted with fishbone here.
GUEST: Right.
GODDARD: The value of these swords is essentially in the fittings. The blades themselves are a little... They've been used. And so, what you have is your suba and your fuchi kashira, and your kozuka, all amounted in mixed metal, and very fine metals. And so, that's essentially where the value is in these blades.
This is a very, very unusual sword. This is a sword worn in the Tokugawa period, which was essentially from 1600 until 1868. This is the crest of the imperial family, the Tokugawa mon of paulownia leaves, which you also see reflected on the mounts.
Some people believe that the bigger the samei, or the ray skin, the more important the samurai who brandished this blade. Here you have your Tokugawa mounts, and you have your rice bails. Now, the samurai were there to protect the agriculture, so this is a symbol of, and it can be also interpreted as a symbol of the rank of the samurai.
The blade here is in really good condition. Unfortunately, with all of these three blades, due to time constraints, we have not been able to unmount them. And an integral part of appraising swords is to find out if they're in good condition, if they haven't been remounted and if, of course, they're signed by famous makers. So, the values that I'm going to give you are preliminary.
For the daisho set, as is, without knowing who made them and the condition of the blades under the tsuka, you'd be looking at $4,000 to $6,000 preliminary value at auction. Now, for the large sword, you'd be looking, again, preliminary auction value—
GUEST: Right.
GODDARD: —of $8,000 to $12,000.
GUEST: Wow.
Loading Standards
Background Essay
Print Background Essay
