* Image is for illustrative purposes only.Nukemaru
抜丸
Also known as: Nukemaru / Heike Treasure Sword / Snake Tachi
Description
Overview of the Sword
Nukemaru is a precious sword treasured by the Taira clan, distinguished by its mystical origins and legendary associations. The sword's name derives from the legend that "it draws itself from its scabbard" — a legendary spiritual property by which the sword senses its owner's peril and slips forth from its sheath of its own accord to protect him, as if consciousness dwelt within the blade. "Nukemaru" ranks among the most mystical names in Japanese sword nomenclature, exemplifying how the ancient Japanese belief that spirits inhabit blades extended even to the act of naming.
The Taira Clan and Nukemaru's Transmission
Nukemaru is transmitted to be a work of the smiths known as "Ko-Hōki" — the sword-makers of Hōki Province (present-day Tottori Prefecture) during the Heian period. It is said that Taira no Tadashio possessed this sword, which was later transmitted to his son Taira no Yorishio. Passing through Yorishio's lineage, Nukemaru eventually entered the collection of the Ashikaga shogunal house.
The Loss and Whereabouts of Nukemaru
Nukemaru, which had been transmitted to the Ashikaga shogunal house, was lost in the fourth year of Eisho (1432), and thereafter its whereabouts became unknown, remaining so to the present day. The disappearance from history of this mystical blade, which bore the legend of "drawing itself from its scabbard," is heightened in mystery by the very legend that will inhabits the sword itself. Even now, with the physical sword lost, Nukemaru lives on through name and legend alone, transmitting the memory of a precious sword that most directly embodies the ancient Japanese belief in finding spirituality within steel.
Legends & Stories
## A Sword That Draws Itself from Its Scabbard—The Legend of a Spirit Blade The legend that gave the name "Nukemaru" tells that this sword would sense its owner's peril and draw itself from its scabbard to protect them. Since ancient times, Japan has harbored a strong belief that spirits dwell within swords, and famous blades in particular were thought to house divine spirits or supernatural powers. That Nukemaru possessed the quality of "drawing itself" was taken as evidence that it was revered by people as a spiritual being, as though the sword itself possessed will—a testament to one reason why the Taira cherished this blade as a special treasure. ## Taira no Kiyomori and the Goddess of Itsukushima Behind Taira no Kiyomori's veneration of Itsukushima Shrine as his clan deity, it is said that Kiyomori himself harbored the belief that he was a reincarnation of the Itsukushima goddess herself. Kiyomori visited Itsukushima Shrine more than thirty-three times and is recorded as having made lavish offerings. If Nukemaru was among the treasures donated at the height of Kiyomori's power, then this sword can be understood as an embodiment in which Kiyomori's devotion, sense of authority, and aesthetic refinement crystallized. As a clan treasure sword embodying the Taira's rise and fall—the principle that "all flourishing must decline"—Nukemaru resonates profoundly with the world of the *Tale of the Heike*. ## The Sea of Dan-no-ura and the Blade That Survived The Taira's tragedy, remembered as "deeper than the sea," saw not only countless lives but also countless treasures buried on the ocean floor at Dan-no-ura. The sea at Dan-no-ura, where the sacred sword—one of the Three Imperial Regalia—was lost, marks Japan's greatest loss in recorded history. Yet Nukemaru did not sink into these waters; it endured and passed into later ages. Originally a treasured blade of Taira no Tadamori, this sword eventually became a precious possession of the Ashikaga shogun family after the Taira's fall. It is recorded that the blade was lost from the shogun's collection in the fourth year of Eikyo (1432), and its certain whereabouts thereafter remain unknown. As a blade whose story has been transmitted alongside the Taira's own rise and fall, Nukemaru continues even today to resonate deeply with the world of the *Tale of the Heike*.