Recommended Reading

There are many hundreds of books on Japanese swords and fittings. Many are in Japanese, and will be necessary as you advance through the world of Nihonto.
Among the English publications, the following are recommended for those who wish to learn about Japanese swords and fittings. They are not in order of importance, but some of the standard beginner books that are easily available and recommended for novices will be indicated with an asterisk.

  • *The Japanese Sword - Kanzan Sato
  • *The Samurai Sword: A Handbook - John M. Yumoto
  • *The Craft of the Japanese Sword - Leon and Hiroko Kapp & Yoshindo Yoshihara
  • *The Connoisseur’s Book of Japanese Swords - Kokan Nagayama (translated by Kenji Mishina)
  • One Hundred Masterpieces from the Collection of Dr. Walter A. Compton - Christies
  • *The Arts of the Japanese Sword - B.W. Robinson
  • The Japanese Sword: The Soul of the Samurai - Gregory Irvine
  • Nippon-To: The Japanese Sword - Inami Hakusui
  • Japanese Swords of the Bizen Tradition - Robert Benson & Darcy Brockbank
  • Japanese Swordsmiths - W.M. Hawley
  • Nihonto Koza (all volumes) - Translated by Harry Watson of AFU
  • Yamanaka Newsletters - Albert Yamanaka
  • Mino-To: Swords & Swordsmiths of Mino Province - Malcolm Cox
  • Lethal Elegance - Joe Earle
  • Early Japanese sword guards : Sukashi tsuba - Masayuki Sasano
  • Modern Japanese Swords and Swordsmiths: From 1868 to the Present - Leon Kapp, Hiroko Kapp, Yoshindo Yoshihara
  • New Generation of Japanese Swordsmiths - Tamio Tsuchiko
  • Modern Japanese Swordsmiths : An Oshigata Book 1868 – 1945 - John Slough
  • Japanese Military and Civil Swords and Dirks - Richard Fuller and Ron Gregory
  • Swords of Imperial Japan 1868-1945 Cyclopedia Edition - Jim Dawson
  • The Art of Japanese Sword Polishing - Leon Kapp
  • Military Swords of Japan 1868-1945 - Richard Fuller and Ron Gregory
  • Yasukuni-to - Tom Kishida
  • Cutting Edge: Japanese Swords In The British Museum - Victor Harris
  • Sword and Same’ - Henri Joly
  • Japanese Sword Blades - Alfred Dubree

    • In-print books can be sourced from dealers such as Kalahari.net or Amazon, while out of print books are available from specialist stores like Satcho, Koshoyama, Alan Bale and others.

    A collector of Japanese swords will ensure they have a good reference library before they make their first sword purchase, and many of the books are collectors items in their own right.
    Members will be advised and assisted further, and occasionally group buys of new books will occur.

    recommended books