[AoshiShinomori]

Here is some true but gross information on ancient techniques... I'm putting it up hidden so those faint of heart needn't read it. I repeat, THIS POST IS TRUE BUT LEFT ME WITH A SOUR TASTE. You would be well advised to skip it because it doesn't affect your over all knowledge nor the actual intent of this thread. Those willing to read it please do understand that I post it here to quote history and record the events that have truly happened centuries ago. I found this information while searching the web for a specific kind of Katana... and as we all know, history has clearly shown us one thing - We all have skeletons in the closet. This post simply provides more information about the swordsmith mentioned in my previous post, namely, Akamuni Yasutsuna.

I sincerely request all viewers - PLEASE DO NOT QUOTE THIS POST, I find it bad enough to read it once.

So here goes...

[Begin Information]

The smith would then sign his name on the tang and pass the blade onto specialist craftsmen who would polish the blade and fit the hilt, guard (tsuba) and other items of sword furniture. The finished blade was sometimes given to a professional sword tester who used the living bodies of condemned criminals or their corpses taken from the execution grounds to test the cutting power of a new sword. Twenty different cuts were used, beginning with severing the hand by cutting through the bones of the wrist and progressing through the thicker limbs of the body. The most difficult cut was known as ryo-kuruma (pair of wheels) which involved slicing through the hips and the thickest part of the spine. The results of the test were usually recorded on the nakago or sword tang, and it is not uncommon to find inscriptions on old swords giving details of the tests such as “two men cut” or “eight arms severed.” Some swords were so well made that in the hands of an expert swordsman they were capable of slicing through tremendous resistance. Some seventeenth century blades bear the inscription “mitsudo setsudan” (three bodies with one cut), and in the martial art of iai-jutsu (the art of drawing the sword) one of the techniques taught is capable of cutting a body in two by slicing through the torso from the right hip to the left shoulder. The terrible cutting power of the Japanese sword does not simply depend on the quality of the blade; it must be wielded by someone who knows how to cut, a skill developed by cutting through bundles made from wet straw or other materials.

[End Information]