How to define a tachi?

[Scully]

Hey all,
Well in my last post here I asked about the use of the tachi, after al ittle more research I'm now looking into how you define a tachi,
There a few easily noteable differences, the curve, length, the way its worn down etc,
But can someone give me the accurate way of telling a tachi from a katana?

Thanks

Scully

[Kendoka]

I think you just did, yourself. I'd add (not seen your other post) that a tachi was intended for a horse mounted soldier and a katana for a soldier on foot, generally. The fittings and markings may also differ in their upsidedownedness.

[tagonagy]

There's a lot of overlap between tachi and katana. Many tachi were mounted as katana during the edo period. Some principles to differentiate tachi from katana:
1)Tachi are more slender towards the tip,
2) tachi are longer; there are very few examples of this since most existing tachi have been shortened, the first unsharpened tachi I saw looked like a no-dachi to me. It had a nakago of 126cm
3) tachi are usually signed on the ura side, Katana on the omote side. This isn't always true though
4) I've been told that tachi are balanced towards the hilt so that they can be easily wielded with one hand - the other hand is on the reins of your horse. I've never handled a tachi so I can't confirm this

[pgsmith]

While there are many different ideas on how tachi were made differently from katana, the only real difference is that tachi are slung edge down, and katana are worn through the obi edge up.

I have seen many instances of katana that were thin, or long, or weighted near the handle. I've also seen instances of tachi that were short, or thick, or weighted more towards the tip. You can tell the diffrerence between a blade made to be mounted as a tachi as opposed to a katana, because the smith signs a blade on the side facing away from the wearer. This means it is signed on opposite sides if it was originally made as a tachi as opposed to a katana.

[birch]

Kendo World magazine published some great articles from swordsmith mukansa Mikami Sadanao - KW issues 4.3, 4.4, 5.1, 5.2.

He explained some facts about sword terminology and process of making japanese sword.

He defined long sword, the sword with blade length over 60 cm - odachi, shorter blades than 60 cm are kodachi.
The long sword could be wear on the hips in katana koshirae (with blade facing up) and in tachi koshirae (with blade facing down). It does mean, that the differents between tachi and katana are in koshirae, not in length of sword. Look at the tachi koshirae term.
http://www.ksky.ne.jp/~sumie99/koshirae.html

Next Mikami Sadanao defined some types of swords - it is related to specific historic eras.
wakizashi (blade with - 30-60 cm), kowakizashi (blade 30-40 cm)
tanto (blade to 30 cm)
ken (symmetrical double-edged blades)

More and exactly informations are in article from Mikami Sadanao. I tried to make easier it. Please look at the article.

------------------
In older historical periods - Heian, Kamakura the samurais worn tachi and tanto and the swords were longer. Later from Muromachi era, the swords were refashioned and shortened and tachi and tanto was changed to katana and wakizashi - the way of wearing of sword (blade facing down -> blade facing up). The shape of blade were changed in historical eras or some swordsmith schools had own characteristics.

Its my opinion.

[Scully]

Kendo World magazine published some great articles from swordsmith mukansa Mikami Sadanao - KW issues 4.3, 4.4, 5.1, 5.2.

He explained some facts about sword terminology and process of making japanese sword.

He defined long sword, the sword with blade length over 60 cm - odachi, shorter blades than 60 cm are kodachi.
The long sword could be wear on the hips in katana koshirae (with blade facing up) and in tachi koshirae (with blade facing down). It does mean, that the differents between tachi and katana are in koshirae, not in length of sword. Look at the tachi koshirae term.
http://www.ksky.ne.jp/~sumie99/koshirae.html

Next Mikami Sadanao defined some types of swords - it is related to specific historic eras.
wakizashi (blade with - 30-60 cm), kowakizashi (blade 30-40 cm)
tanto (blade to 30 cm)
ken (symmetrical double-edged blades)

More and exactly informations are in article from Mikami Sadanao. I tried to make easier it. Please look at the article.

------------------
In older historical periods - Heian, Kamakura the samurais worn tachi and tanto and the swords were longer. Later from Muromachi era, the swords were refashioned and shortened and tachi and tanto was changed to katana and wakizashi - the way of wearing of sword (blade facing down -> blade facing up). The shape of blade were changed in historical eras or some swordsmith schools had own characteristics.

Its my opinion.

You mentioned something about the singing on one side of the blade, can you elaborate a little more?

How exactly did one wear a tachi, obviously blade down, but the sageo looks a good deal longer and obviously has the mounting straps on it,

Best Regards

Scully

[birch]

You mentioned something about the singing on one side of the blade, can you elaborate a little more?

It isnt information from me.

How exactly did one wear a tachi, obviously blade down, but the sageo looks a good deal longer and obviously has the mounting straps on it,

I dont know exactly. Please look at this picture from wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ku...vered_head.jpg

My sempai buyed in Japan a book (budo dictionary - it is in japanese) a there are lot terms and lot of great and very demonstrative pictures from budo history, budo and samurai real things.... There are were lot of information about katchu bujutsu and issues related to armors, tachi. I will try to ask about name of book.

[yoda-waza]

Google pulled this up. It's the same website that birch linked to, but a different page.

[birch]

My sempai buyed in Japan a book (budo dictionary - it is in japanese) a there are lot terms and lot of great and very demonstrative pictures from budo history, budo and samurai real things.... There are were lot of information about katchu bujutsu and issues related to armors, tachi. I will try to ask about name of book.

Hi, here is ISBN of this book ISBN4-7601-2160-9 C1576 Yoshihiko Sasama, 2003

Here is link:
http://www.kashiwashobo.co.jp/cgi-bi...cgi&backlist=1

[birch]

I scaned two pictures from Budo dictionary about tachi fasten.

Here are links to the pictures - they explain a lot. The dictionary contains more ways how fasten tachi... There are next lot of informations for people who can read nihongo.

scan 1 - part of page 505
scan 2 - page 314