Tsurugi (sword)

The Tsurugi Ken (Japanese ) refers to a straight sword with a symmetrical, double-edged blade and centered tip. The counterpart to form Katana - single-edged blade. The word tsurugi is the Japanese ( kun - ) reading and ken Sino Japanese ( ON ) reading of the character剣, Chinese Jian.

Similar to the Tsurugi / Ken was the Tsurugi -no- tachi, a straight sword, in which only one side of the blade was sharpened throughout. The other (back ) side was worked out only in the front part near the tip to a second cutting.

Swords of this type were common in Japan from the mid-7th century to the 9th century. From the 9th century started to develop to the curved Tachi.