Tamahagane

Tamahagane is the predecessor of the industrial carbon steels that have become essential for hand made Japanese knives. The trajectory of Japanese blade making technology and approaches to edged tools all draw directly from the unique properties of this steel. Tamahagane steel is easy to forge laminate where hard steel is supported by softer tougher iron or mild steel which has become an integral part of Japanese blade making. Tamahagane can be easily polished at high hardnesses, resulting in the techniques of fine finishing with naturally occurring Japanese stones that still informs Japanese sharpening.

Simply put, without tamahagane Japanese smithing and blade making as we know it would not exist. 

Read more about our featured makers of Tamahagane steel, Tanabe Tatara in the product listings.