01-13-2015, 01:47 AM
I don't know anything about "crappy" Japanese swords. I do know the Japanese didn't have great swordsmiths until a Chinese princess went to Japan during the Tang Dynasty. She brought two mainland smiths with her.
Here's a little information about early steel swords made during the Qin Dynasty and early Han Dynasty. And I would think that a small bit of knowledge of their techniques might help this thread, if simply to let everyone know how crappy these swords were. The earliest-- c. 220BC to the Year Zero-- were "standard" folded steel with anywhere from 30 to 50 refinings. As such, the 1st refining resulted in 2 layers, the second refining being 4 layers, so that by the 10th refining the carbon content was distributed within 1,024 layers of steel.
Unlike Roman and Celtic swords, we have precisely dated Chinese swords because many of them contain historic inscriptions. By the beginning of the 1st century AD, the swordmaking process was refined. A typical example is a jian forge-welded in 3 sandwiched plates ("sanmei"), dated by its inscription to AD77, plus the words "forged to 50 refinings." Here is a cut-away illustration of the analyzed blade:
[attachment=11521]cross2.jpg[/attachment]
The central plate extends out as the cutting edge, and it's 0.7 to 0.8 % carbon steel.
The two sandwiching plates have steel layer zones consisting of 0.4 % and 0.6 to 0.7 % carbon (the purple and white zones respectively).
During the 1st century AD, the Chinese began differentially heat-treating, and the highest quality ones were clay-tempered at night using only the forge as a light source. Here, at least, is a little "meat" on the physics of swordmaking, not just conjecture. I would think swordmaking in Europe paralleled that of the East, so hopefully the breakdown of this sword has value.
Interestingly (or not), the majority of Type 1 Late Sarmatian swords used from 100BC to AD100, appear to be of Chinese manufacture, and almost all of the ones recovered have jade pommel and scabbard fittings, including the scabbard slides. I have been collecting examples of these crappy swords for 10 years, and they come from craftsmen who have been making them since 200 BC.
Here's a little information about early steel swords made during the Qin Dynasty and early Han Dynasty. And I would think that a small bit of knowledge of their techniques might help this thread, if simply to let everyone know how crappy these swords were. The earliest-- c. 220BC to the Year Zero-- were "standard" folded steel with anywhere from 30 to 50 refinings. As such, the 1st refining resulted in 2 layers, the second refining being 4 layers, so that by the 10th refining the carbon content was distributed within 1,024 layers of steel.
Unlike Roman and Celtic swords, we have precisely dated Chinese swords because many of them contain historic inscriptions. By the beginning of the 1st century AD, the swordmaking process was refined. A typical example is a jian forge-welded in 3 sandwiched plates ("sanmei"), dated by its inscription to AD77, plus the words "forged to 50 refinings." Here is a cut-away illustration of the analyzed blade:
[attachment=11521]cross2.jpg[/attachment]
The central plate extends out as the cutting edge, and it's 0.7 to 0.8 % carbon steel.
The two sandwiching plates have steel layer zones consisting of 0.4 % and 0.6 to 0.7 % carbon (the purple and white zones respectively).
During the 1st century AD, the Chinese began differentially heat-treating, and the highest quality ones were clay-tempered at night using only the forge as a light source. Here, at least, is a little "meat" on the physics of swordmaking, not just conjecture. I would think swordmaking in Europe paralleled that of the East, so hopefully the breakdown of this sword has value.
Interestingly (or not), the majority of Type 1 Late Sarmatian swords used from 100BC to AD100, appear to be of Chinese manufacture, and almost all of the ones recovered have jade pommel and scabbard fittings, including the scabbard slides. I have been collecting examples of these crappy swords for 10 years, and they come from craftsmen who have been making them since 200 BC.
Alan J. Campbell
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
