Tonbokiri
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The Tonbokiri (蜻蛉切) is one of three legendary Japanese spears created by the famed swordsmith Sengo Masazane, said to be wielded by the daimyō Honda Tadakatsu, a leading general of Tokugawa Ieyasu.
Name
[edit]The spear derives its name from the myth that a dragonfly landed on its blade and was instantly cut in two. Thus tonbo (Japanese for "dragonfly") and kiri (Japanese for "cutting"), translating this spear's name as "Dragonfly Cutter".
History
[edit]The weapon, along with Nihongō and Otegine, is listed as one of "three great spears" in the Kyōhō Meibutsucho, a listing of famous Koto blades made before the Nanbokucho period and compiled by the Hon'ami family during the Kyōhō era (1716–1735).[1]
The Tonbokiri is owned by a private individual and is on loan to the Sano Art Museum for its collection.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ Nagayama, Kōkan. The Connoisseur's Book of Japanese Swords. Kodansha International, 1997. p35
- ^ Three Great Spears of Japan. The Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum “Nagoya Touken World”
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