Best Authentic Japanese Swords out there...

by KB

QUESTION: Hello, i wanted to know if you could give me a list of the top authentic japanese sword makers in the world today 1,000.00 and up. Combat ready as in i could toss it to Mushashi himself with no complaints.

ANSWER: Hmm, that would be quite a list! And of course, if the sword was for Musashi - I don't think he would care - after all, he preferred a wooden sword in the end and his philosphy was along the lines of "it doesn't matter about the sword, it is the person using it" ;-)

Anyway, a very quick shortlist would be along the lines of Hanwei Forge, Bugei Trading Company, Huano Forge, Dynasty Forge, Zheng Wu Sword Forging Institute & Cicada Forge all spring to mind.

Of course, for around the US$10,000+ mark there are several makers in Japan making 'cheap' authentic Katana, though most with full Koshirae are in the US$25,000+ price range..

But yeah - try googling some of the forges I mentioned above - there are MANY more (and I haven't even touched on custom swords here), but it is a good start if you are trying to impress the Kensei Musashi Miyamoto. ;-)

Best,

- Paul