Shotokan Karate Legend's Katana Collection

Kata collection by the late Sensei Yutaka Yaguchi, a Legendary Shotokan Karate Grandmaster. He shared his Katana collection with the Kuro-Obi Media members. Some were known, prestigious swords, some were from unknown backgrounds, and some had very nice stories on how they ended up arriving in his collection.
#karate #shotokan #katana #japanese

[@BelloBudo007]

Thank you, that was interesting from a number of perspectives, including that Japanese writing from a while back can't always be read. I remember walking into a sword shop in the back streets of Tokyo and being caught-out at the price of a quality Japanese katana. I had to check my maths to see if I had the decimal point in the right place.

[@DragonDreamVNY]

Was that in around Yoyogi? North side of the Meiji Jingu park?
Circa 2012 We came across a small sword museum and antique seller. The gentleman inside was very kind to talk to us about his displays. I had never seen so many 0s on a Price plaque before 😅❤
They certainly looked beautiful and oozes craftsmanship from the Damascus steel folded pattern.

[@BelloBudo007]

@@DragonDreamVNY I don't believe it was Yoyogi. I might remember Yoyogi as I was in a world championship there in 1983.
Having said that, many of my 'Tokyo by Foot' experiences, tended to be not going off the beaten path too much. From memory this was around 1991, between an Ishikawa hostel & the Tokkaido Martial Art shop that I used to frequent and annoy the men & women that worked there, who were delightful. 😉
The sword shop was an unassuming, no frills, serious business, little place right on the street. One thing I clearly remember is how helpful the owner was & his smile when he saw my expression upon realising the actual price. My challenge was to look not too shocked and give the impression that the swords were worth every penny, which I suspect they probably were. 🤔

[@nagai91]

Thank you so much for this sharing.

[@PhinTheShoto]

Absolutely beautiful!