Katana, the traditional blades of a Japanese samurai warrior, were forged to meticulous standards and gave their owners high status
Samurai warriors ruled Japan from 1185 to 1868, replacing the government and introducing immense discipline and loyalty to the military in the absence of a police force. To be a samurai, warriors needed to abide by the ethic code of ‘bushidō’, which translates to ‘the way of the warrior’. Included in this code were eight virtues that the samurai lived by: justice, courage, mercy, respect, honesty, honour, loyalty and self-control. While these sound like positive traits, samurai took bushidō to the extreme. Samurai couldn’t show any sign that they were afraid of death – a mistake on the battlefield might force a samurai to honour his name and end his own life. This was viewed as a much more desirable outcome than losing their samurai status.
The most important weapon a samurai owned was their sword, called a katana. While the other weapons samurai used to fight with were important in attaining victories, no other weapon was as personal to them as their sword. The katana was worn at all times, as if it were part of the warrior. Used mostly for open combat, these swords were typically between 100 and 110 centimetres in length and required two hands to use. Bushidō dictated that a samurai must show righteousness, only attacking an enemy when there was an important reason. This meant that they were unlikely to attack with their katana on a whim. However, if they believed their honour had been compromised, the code of conduct allowed them to strike anyone of a lower rank than themselves.
