Tamahagane Steel Katana with Dragon Tsuba - Black Lacquer Saya & Brown Ito Wrap

The blade on this katana is forged from genuine tamahagane - a jewel steel produced by smelting iron sand and charcoal in a tatara furnace, a process that fuses iron and carbon into a layered steel ore. High-carbon and low-carbon pieces are carefully sorted after smelting: the high-carbon material forms the cutting edge and core, while the tougher low-carbon steel encases it. The result is a structurally differentiated blade that follows the same logic as classical nihonto construction. Explore the full range at Tamahagane Katana Sword.

After forging, the blade undergoes clay tempering to develop a visible, natural hamon line along the edge. Polishing is performed section by section using hazuya and jizuya stones, which bring out the grain pattern and hamon detail. The final high-polish chrome finish gives the blade a bright, mirror-like appearance that catches light cleanly along its entire length.

The tsuka is built over a full-tang core, wrapped with genuine white samegawa (ray skin) panels as the base layer, then bound in brown cotton ito cord in the traditional diamond-knot pattern. The resulting handle has a warm tan tone with the characteristic white diamond windows of samegawa showing through - exactly as visible in the main product image.

The hand-carved black iron tsuba features a dragon relief motif, providing a dark, textured contrast point between the brown handle and the blade. A red seppa sits between the tsuba and habaki, adding a subtle accent detail at the transition. The sageo cord is woven in black and brown to mirror the handle's color palette, tying the entire koshirae together visually.

This katana measures 41 inches overall and weighs 3 pounds, packaged in a 43 x 4 x 4 inch box with a shipping weight of 4 pounds. The black lacquered hardwood saya, full-tang construction, and hand-polished tamahagane blade make this a considered choice for serious collectors who want traditional materials and documented craft process in a single piece.