In a samurai family, swords were so valued that they were passed down from generation to generation, from father to son. If the hilt (sword handle) or scabbard (cover) wore out or broke, new ones ...

NARA, Japan — They were once weapons of war. The most famous blades from Japan's rich history. Legendary swords that date back a thousand years or more. Travel across the country and you will see them ...

At Fusahiro Shimojima’s workshop, in the industrial city of Saitama, fires rage in small pits and an earthen floor absorbs the din of hammering. The Japanese swordsmith pounds the nascent blade of his ...