Samurai Swordmaker Katsuo Kato The 25th Kanefusa Fujiwara

[Barry Lee Hands]

When I was in Japan a couple of years ago I met Katsuo Kato and his son Masafumi Kato, the 25th and 26th generation Kanefusa Fujiwara sword makers.
Here are some pics of them , the assistants Hiroaki Fukudome and Hiroaki Korogi, and myself.
They demonstrated their swordmaking to me and showed me the engraving block and chisels used in their work.

Katso Kato and I in front of his forge in his workshop in Seki city.

One of the assistants with raw steel ready to be forged into a billet

What becomes of the steel when finished forging

A heated billet

Forging

Now the lookeylou gets to try

try harder

Not as easy as it looks

 

[tundratrekers@mtaonline.n]

Glad somebody is living the dream!
Thanks,Barry.mike

 

[Andrew Biggs]

Fabulous!!!!

Cheers
Andrew

 

[eastslope]

Awesome pictures! Do you have anymore? I would love to see the process. Thanks Barry!!!

 

[tundratrekers@mtaonline.n]

Yea, i didn't see the engraving set-up?
I miss it? mike

 

[Barry Lee Hands]

Yes guys, thanks, I have some other pics, I will upload some engraving block and tools pics tomorrow.
Here is a pic of Masafumi Kato, the son, the 26th generation swordmaker, showing a finished sword. He is standing outside the room where the polishing and engraving is done. The polishing and engraving is almost a ritual, very solemn, usually done in solitude.
The steel billet making and forging usually involves two or more people as a team effort.
In this pic Masafumi is explaining the heat treat line, which is like a signature of the maker and he explains how no other family does it exactly as theirs is done.
The edge of the blade is covered with clay, by hand, and the way the clay is applied and the heat is applied determines the look of the temper line on the blade, hence giving it a signature look.

 

[Barry Lee Hands]

Engraving on blade

 

[Barry Lee Hands]

Here is the engraving block and tool.
The block is made of wood and is covered with pitch. When the sword is to be engraved, the pitch is melted, and the sword pushed into the melted pitch. The engraver sits crosslegged with a small hammer and chisel and performs the work.

 

[kfengraver]

wow that is way to cool for words... i am a huge fan of mokume gane. and engraving. thank you so much for sharing you photos.

 

[ouporblowup]

wooow that looks like so much fun

ooo

 

[Barry Lee Hands]

wooow that looks like so much fun

ooo

Yes,, lots of fun.

 

[monk]

what a treat. i would think these artists are, from start to finish, in a sort of trancendental state of mind as they go about working from centuries of cultural and family induced tradition.

 

[Marcus Hunt]

Excellent thread Barry! Do they engrave the blade prior to heat treatment?

 

[Barry Lee Hands]

Thanks Monk.
Thanks Marcus, we can credit your father with this one, when I visited you and him in Surrey, he suggested I go to Japan to study damascene, and this was a side trip from that original suggestion.
I believe it is heat treated first, as that is when the bend to the sword is put in, but I may have that wrong.
Perhaps they polish and engrave it before the heat treat, and repolish, I just cant recall exactly, I took the trip three years ago.