The Kabutowari (Japanese: 兜割, lit. "helmet breaker" or "skull breaker"[1]), also known as hachiwari, was a type of knife-shaped weapon, resembling a jitte in many respects. This weapon was carried as a side-arm by the samurai class of feudal Japan.
Antique Japanese hachiwari with a nihonto style of tsuka (handle).
Types[]
kabutowari were usually around 350mm long; some larger versions are around 450mm long.[citation needed] There were two types of kabutowari: dirk-type kabutowari, and truncheon-type kabutowari.
The first type of kabutowari was forged with a sharp dirk-like point,[2] which could be used to parry an opponent's sword, to hook the cords of armor or a helmet, or like a can opener to separate armor plates. The sharp point could pierce unprotected or weak areas of an opponent's armor like the armpit area.[2] The blade of this type of kabutowari was a curved tapered square[3] iron or steel bar with a hook on its back edge.[4] In combat, one could parry and catch a blade with that hook, as with a jitte. Some kabutowari of this type were mounted in the style of a tanto with a koshirae.[2]
The other type of kabutowari was a blunt, cast iron or forged truncheon-like weapon resembling a tekkan or a jitte. This type of kabutowari had the same basic shape as the dirk-type kabutowari including the hook, but it was usually blunt and not meant for stabbing.[citation needed]
Use[]
It would appear[according to whom?] that tales of samurai breaking open a kabuto (helmet) are more folklore than anything else.[5] The hachi (helmet bowl) is the central component of a kabuto; it is made of pie piece-shaped plates of steel or iron riveted together at the sides and at the top to a large, thick grommet of sorts (called a tehen-no-kanamono), and at the bottom to a metal strip that encircles the hachi.[6][7] This would require enormous pressure to split open. This idea that the kabutowari was somehow able to smash or damage a helmet kabuto is most probably a misinterpretation of the name which could have several meanings, as hachi could mean skull or helmet bowl and wari could mean, split, rip, crack or smash.[5]
In modern times there is no ryū (school or style) known to train with kabutowari, although certain dojos within Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu still train with them, as an extension of jittejutsu.[citation needed] A number of weapons retailers in Japan still sell usable kabutowari.[citation needed]
Gallery[]
_1.jpg "Antique Japanese hachiwari (hachiwara or kabutowari) 1.jpg (1.29 MB)")
References[]
- ↑ Pauley's Guide - A Dictionary of Japanese Martial Arts and Culture, Daniel C. Pauley, Samantha Pauley, 2009 P.66
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Cunningham, Don. Taiho-Jutsu: Law and Order in the Age of the Samurai. p. 75.
- ↑ Stone, George Cameron. A Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor: In All Countries and in All Times. Courier Dover Publications. 1999. pp. 273.
- ↑ Bennett, Matthew. The Hutchinson dictionary of ancient & medieval warfare. Taylor & Francis. 1998. pp. 136.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Mol, Serge. Classical weaponry of Japan: special weapons and tactics of the martial arts. Kodansha International. 2003. pp. 71.
- ↑ Kabuto page of Nihon Katchû Seisakuben, An Online Japanese Armour Manual
- ↑ Absolon, Trevor. The Watanabe Art Museum Samurai Armour Collection: Volume I ~ Kabuto & Mengu
External links[]
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The original article can be found at Kabutowari and the edit history here.