Japanese Tachi

Timeline

1. c. 1240–1245Yamashiro Province · Kyoto PrefectureIn the mid-13th century, swordsmiths in Yamashiro, Bizen, and elsewhere perfected tachi tempering and steel-cladding techniques; blade curvature increased for mounted slashing, with tachi lengths typically between two and three shaku, becoming the standard armament of the samurai.
2. 1221–1250Kamakura · Kanagawa PrefectureAfter the Jōkyū War, the Kamakura shogunate strengthened regulations on gokenin armament; the tachi served both as a marker of samurai status and as a practical weapon, and gokenin were required to keep a tachi and horse tack ready for mobilization.
3. 1241–1250Bizen Province · Okayama PrefectureBetween 1241 and 1250, swordsmith schools in Bizen, Yamashiro, and elsewhere continued producing tachi; forging techniques spread through master-disciple transmission, and systems for tachi signatures and inscriptions gradually became standardized, laying the foundation for later Japanese sword connoisseurship.