From the Sword Ban to Revival: The Japanese Sword Preservation Movement in the Meiji and Taisho Periods

The Impact of the Sword Ban——A Turning Point for Japanese Swords

On March 28, 1876 (Meiji 9), Imperial Rescript No. 38——known as the "Sword Ban"——was promulgated. This edict, which prohibited samurai from wearing swords, was far more than a mere reform of dress codes; it marked a historical turning point that shook the very raison d'être of Japanese swords. The katana, which had symbolized the privilege of the samurai class, was cast aside in a single night as a "relic of the past."

The reverberations of the Sword Ban appeared immediately in the market. Destitute members of the samurai class were forced to part with their family heirlooms, and blades flooded antique markets and pawn shops. Foreigners featured prominently among the buyers; foreign employees hired by the government and diplomats purchased celebrated swords for a pittance and carried them overseas. Meanwhile, under the policy of industrialization and commercial promotion, demand for metal resources increased, and reports emerged from throughout the land of sword blades being melted down and repurposed as raw material. Masterworks by renowned smiths, passed down across centuries, were lost one after another in this way.

The Awakening to Cultural Heritage Protection——The Meiji Government's Response

Yet not all developments were destructive. The Meiji government began recognizing the importance of cultural heritage at an early stage. The "Ordinance for Preservation of Ancient Implements and Objects," promulgated in 1871 (Meiji 4), was one of Japan's earliest attempts at cultural property protection administration, mandating the preservation of ancient implements and artworks in each prefecture. This measure also reflected a national reconsideration following the large-scale destruction of Buddhist art during the suppression of Buddhism.

In 1872 (Meiji 5), Japan's first exposition was held at Yushima Seido, where ancient artworks were displayed and evaluated. In 1882 (Meiji 15), a museum opened in Ueno, Tokyo (now the Tokyo National Museum), which also took on the role of collecting and preserving celebrated swords. The museum would later be renamed the "Imperial Museum" in 1889 (Meiji 22).

Two figures played crucial roles during this period: Ernest Fenollosa and Okakura Tenshin. Beginning around 1884 (Meiji 17), the two men conducted surveys of temples and shrines throughout the nation and energetically promoted the protection of ancient artworks. Their activities led to a broader reevaluation of Japanese art in general, creating fertile soil for katana and blades to be reconsidered as "artworks."

The Origins of the National Treasure and Important Cultural Property System

In 1897 (Meiji 30), the "Law for the Preservation of Ancient Temples and Shrines" was enacted. This groundbreaking legislation formally committed the state to cultural property protection, and it became the prototype for a system whereby particularly valuable cultural properties would be designated and protected as "National Treasures." Swords became subject to this system, and celebrated blades held in important temples and shrines began receiving the designation of "National Treasure."

However, the "National Treasure" designations of the Meiji period differed from today's system, focusing primarily on cultural properties held by temples and shrines. It was only after legal reforms in the Taisho and Showa periods that privately owned swords were broadly encompassed within protective measures. Nevertheless, the significance of the state officially defining "swords to be protected" was immense. This was the moment when the legal foundation was first established for Japanese swords to transition from mere weapons to "cultural heritage."

The Taisho Period——The Revival of Sword Research and Connoisseurship Culture

As the Taisho era (1912–1926) began, social interest in swords took on new dimensions. Amid advancing industrialization and urbanization, nostalgia for traditional culture and momentum for its reevaluation heightened, and the organized activities of sword enthusiasts intensified.

It was during this period that classification systems based on "schools" such as Bizen swords, Soshu swords, and Yamato swords, as well as "periods" such as the Kamakura, Northern and Southern Courts, Muromachi, and Edo, were systematized and refined. A unique culture of "sword connoisseurship," blending research and appreciation, emerged from this synthesis.

The culture of connoisseurship and appraisal also developed significantly during the Taisho period. While appraisers descended from the Honami family, historically known as authorities on sword authentication since the Edo period, remained active, new researchers and enthusiasts also refined their appraisal techniques. In appraisal methods, the following elements were analyzed comprehensively, and the skill of "reading" swords was inherited and developed as systematic knowledge:

• jihada
• hamon
• nakago
• mei

The research achievements of the Taisho period are symbolized by Honami Koson (1879–1955). As the leading authority on sword appraisal within the Honami lineage, Koson assembled in his work "Kosan Oshigata" sword rubbings and detailed explanations, establishing foundational materials for modern sword research. During the same period, literati and art critics centered on the Shirakaba school began discussing Japanese swords in language such as "swords are moving sculpture" and "hamon patterns resonate with abstract painting," placing blades within the context of modern art criticism distinct from traditional samurai modes of evaluation.

Japanese Swords as "Artworks"——The Completion of Modern Redefinition

The most significant transformation achieved by preservation movements from the Meiji through Taisho periods was a fundamental shift in the social positioning of Japanese swords. The katana, which had functioned as a weapon and symbol of samurai authority, was redefined as "fine craft artwork."

This transformation is symbolized by the changing methods of display in exhibitions and expositions. Swords came to be evaluated not by blade sharpness or practical combat function, but by "aesthetic elements" such as the texture of the jihada, the beauty of the hamon, and the design of the koshirae. In exhibitions at the Imperial Museum, celebrated blades were placed in glass cases and presented to the general public as artworks alongside paintings and sculpture.

Within Japan, the Domestic Industrial Exhibitions held between 1877 (Meiji 10) and 1903 (Meiji 36) (the 1st through 5th editions) promoted the transformation of swords into "artworks." A sword section was featured at each exposition, and submitted works underwent judging and were awarded honors, establishing a system whereby the superiority of manufacturing techniques was publicly evaluated. Furthermore, during the same period, the Japanese government exhibited Japanese swords at successive world's fairs, impressing Western art enthusiasts and scholars with the blades as the "pinnacle of Oriental fine craft."

• 1873 Vienna World's Fair
• 1878 Paris World's Fair
• 1893 Chicago World's Fair
• 1900 Paris World's Fair

By the late Taisho period, roughly half a century after the Sword Ban, Japanese swords had largely lost their utility as weapons while establishing a new identity as "crystallizations of beauty" and "the pinnacle of craftsmanship." This modern redefinition would become the spiritual foundation for sword protection legislation and cultural property systems in the Showa period and beyond, laying the groundwork for the sword preservation culture that extends to the present day. Each individual blade handled by TOUKENZA shines in the modern era as "artwork" after passing through this long history of redefinition.