NCJSC Publications

This "Novice Course" on Nihonto (Japanese swords) was first written as a series of articles by Yoshikawa Kōen sensei for the Nihon Tōken Hozon Kai (NTHK). Dr. Gordon Robson translated the text into English for NCJSC and organized the material into book form in 1990-1992. The second edition (2022) is a digital remastering of the book with improved print and image quality and some minor updates by Dr. Robson. The third edition (2023) has rescanned oshigata.​

​​Note: New members receive a complimentary copy as a benefit of membership.​

This is the first volume of Paul Allman's 1994 book form of Albert Yamanaka's "NIHONTO Newsletter". It starts with biographical information on Albert Yamanaka and some comments on how to approach studying Nihonto. This is followed by a section on etiquette and care of Nihonto. The majority of the book contains a description of Koto Period (Old Sword, pre-1596) swordsmiths' work organized by province and school. The final section is a discussion of the ten famous disciples of Masamune. Softbound, 509 pages.

Note on the 3rd edition: Previous editions of this book were based on photocopies of the original newsletters, as published by Albert Yamanaka.  For this edition, the text has been digitally remastered. 

This book is about tsuba (Japanese sword guards) from the Kofun Jidai (late 3rd to mid-7th centuries) to the Edo period (1615-1868). Kazutaro Torigoye's 鐔 芸 術 考 (Tsuba Geijutsu-kō, A Treatise on the Aesthetics of Tsuba) was written in 1960. Robert Haynes' TSUBA, An Aesthetic Study, largely based on Tsuba Geijutsu-kō, was edited and published by Alan Harvie for the NCJSC in 1994-1997. In 2022, this digitally remastered 2nd edition was produced by the NCJSC to improve the quality of the text and images.

This book is a translation of an article which first appeared in the Bulletin de la Societe Franco-Japonaise de Paris, Vol. XXXIII, April, 1914. The historical study of Japanese sword fittings spans about a century. Akiyama Kyusaku played a significant role in the first fifty years of this research. Notably, European collectors and students who had close contact with Akiyama and other experts shared translations and insights during the late nineteenth century. This translation was published by the NCJSC in 1996 and digitally remastered in 2023.

The Kinkō Meikan, by Masumoto and Kokubo, is a collection of photographs of signatures which appear on tsuba and other fittings of the Japanese sword. It gives the artist's name, province, period and rating. This book is an English translation produced by John Yumoto and Alan Harvie for the NCJSC between 1982 and 1988. This book contains a translation of the text but not the photos. Students who want to study the signatures or the relevant kanji will also want to get a copy of the Japanese book.

An English translation of the "Hompō Sōken Kinkō Ryakushi", by Wada Tsunashirō, translated from Japanese by Henri L. Joly and Alan L. Harvie. This comprehensive book delves into the intricate world of tsuba, exploring their origins, creators, and organization by historical period and school. It covers both iron and kinko tsuba, and includes original Japanese and alphabetized English indexes at the end.