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

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

On March 28, 1876 (Meiji 9), Dajōkan Proclamation No. 38—the so-called "Sword Abolition Edict" (Haitōrei)—was promulgated. This law, which prohibited samurai from wearing swords, represented far more than a mere change in dress codes; it became a historical turning point that shook the very raison d'être of the Japanese sword. The blade, once a symbol of samurai privilege, was suddenly relegated to the status of an antiquated relic.

The aftermath of the Sword Abolition Edict appeared swiftly in the marketplace. Impoverished samurai sold family heirloom swords, flooding antique markets and pawn shops with blades. Foreign buyers, including foreign employees and diplomats, frequently acquired valuable swords for pittance and exported them overseas. Additionally, under the Meiji government's policy of promoting commerce and industry, demand for metal resources surged, leading to reports throughout the country of sword blades being melted down and repurposed as raw materials. Master craftsmen's works, passed down over centuries, were thus lost one after another.

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

However, not all developments were destructive. The Meiji government began recognizing the importance of cultural heritage at an early stage. The "Preservation Method for Ancient Vessels and Artifacts" (Koji Kyubutsu Hozonhō), promulgated in 1871 (Meiji 4), was one of Japan's earliest cultural property protection policies, commanding the prefectures to preserve ancient vessels and artworks. This measure was born partly as a response to the social problem created by widespread destruction of Buddhist art through the anti-Buddhist movement.

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

During this period, Ernest Fenollosa and Okakura Kakuzō played crucial roles. Around 1884 (Meiji 17), both men conducted investigations throughout the nation's temples and shrines, energetically promoting the protection of ancient art. Their activities led to a broader reevaluation of Japanese art in general, creating fertile ground for swords to be reassessed as "artworks."

The Origins of the National Treasure and Important Cultural Properties System

In 1897 (Meiji 30), the "Law for the Preservation of Ancient Temples and Shrines" was enacted. This was a landmark piece of legislation marking the state's formal entry into cultural property protection, and it became the prototype for a system of designating and protecting particularly valuable cultural properties as "National Treasures." Swords came under the scope of this system, and renowned blades held by temples and shrines began receiving the National Treasure designation.

However, National Treasure designations during the Meiji period differed from today's system, focusing primarily on cultural properties held by temples and shrines. Privately owned swords would not come under broad protection until legal reforms in the Taisho and Showa periods. Nevertheless, the significance of the state officially defining "swords worthy of protection" was immense. This moment marked the first formation of a legal foundation enabling 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, society's interest in swords took on new dimensions. With industrialization and urbanization advancing, a sense of nostalgia for traditional culture and momentum toward its reevaluation grew, and the organized activities of sword enthusiasts became increasingly vigorous.

It was during this period that classification systems became refined—distinguishing sword "schools" such as Bizen, Soshu, and Yamato swords, and "periods" such as Kamakura, Northern and Southern Courts, Muromachi, and Edo. A unique cultural phenomenon called "sword connoisseurship," which fused study with appreciation, emerged.

The culture of connoisseurship and appraisal also developed significantly during the Taisho period. Appraisers continuing the lineage of the Honami family, historically known as authorities on sword appraisal since the Edo period, remained active. At the same time, new researchers and enthusiasts refined appraisal techniques. Methods of comprehensively analyzing the blade's grain, blade pattern, tang, and signature became refined, and the technique of "reading" swords became systematized and transmitted as codified knowledge.

The research achievements of the Taisho period are embodied in Honami Kōson (1879–1955). Operating as the foremost authority on sword appraisal within the Honami family lineage, Kōson compiled sword rubbings and detailed commentary in his work *Kōzan Oshigata*, establishing foundational materials for modern sword research. During the same period, intellectuals and art critics centered around the Shirakaba School began discussing Japanese swords using language such as "the sword is sculpture in motion" and "blade patterns approach abstract painting," situating swords within the context of modern art criticism—a discourse distinctly different from the traditional evaluation language of the warrior class.

The Japanese Sword as "Artwork"—The Completion of Modern Redefinition

The most important transformation achieved by the preservation movement spanning the Meiji and Taisho periods was a fundamental shift in the sword's social positioning. The blade, having functioned as a weapon and symbol of samurai authority, was redefined as a "work of fine and decorative art."

This transformation is symbolized by the changing display methods of swords in expositions and exhibitions. Rather than being evaluated for the sharpness of the blade or practical combat function, swords came to be appraised for "aesthetic elements"—the grain of the blade, the beauty of the blade pattern, and the design of the fittings. In the Imperial Museum's displays, celebrated swords were enclosed in glass cases and presented to the general public as artworks on par with paintings and sculptures.

Within Japan, the Domestic Industrial Expositions held between 1877 (Meiji 10) and 1903 (Meiji 36) promoted the "artification" of swords. Each exposition included a sword division where exhibits received formal assessment and recognition, establishing a system whereby manufacturing skill could be publicly evaluated. Furthermore, during this same period, the Japanese government exhibited Japanese swords at the 1873 Vienna World's Fair, the 1878 Paris Exposition, the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, and the 1900 Paris Exposition, impressing European and American art connoisseurs and researchers with swords as "the pinnacle of Oriental fine and decorative arts."

Half a century after the Sword Abolition Edict, by the end of the Taisho period, the Japanese sword had lost virtually all practical utility as a weapon while establishing a new identity as a "crystallization of beauty" and the "ultimate expression of craftsmanship." This modern redefinition became the spiritual foundation for sword protection legislation and cultural property systems from the Showa period onward, laying the groundwork for the sword preservation culture that continues to the present day. Each individual sword handled by TOUKENZA shines in the contemporary age as an "artwork," having passed through this long history of redefinition.