A Beautiful Signed Aikuchi Tanto With Outstandingly Beautiful Nishiji Lacquer, With Silver Imperial Mon, Formerly of The Deryck Ingham Collection

From the Deryck Ingham collection, one of England's foremost Japanese sword collectors. His collection of 57 swords was donated to the Tower of London collection around 2001.

His Tower of London donated collection was then part of the display in the Royal Armouries Museum, Leeds. The 400th anniversary of Japanese-British relations in 2013, the Japanese arms and armour in the Oriental Gallery were re-displayed and re-interpreted.

This included the addition of important mid-16th century Japanese armour which was a diplomatic gift to the King of Spain in the 1580’s, long before British contact with Japan. This armour XXVIA.2, which was acquired by the Tower Armouries in 1841, is scheduled to undergo conservation and relacing. Important stages in this process will be recorded for the public to show how research has enabled the armour to be correctly re-assembled. The new display also featured a fresh selection of Japanese blades and sword furniture from the generous gift made by the family of Deryck Ingham in his memory in 2001.



A tanto would most often be worn by Samurai, and it was very uncommon to come across a non samurai with a tanto. It was not only men who carried these daggers, women would on occasions carry a small tanto called a kaiken in their obi which would be used for self-defence. In feudal Japan a tanto would occasionally be worn by Samurai in place of the wakizashi in a combination called the daisho, which roughly translates as big-little, in reference to the big Samurai Sword (Katana) and the small dagger (tanto). Before the rise of the katana it was more common for a Samurai to carry a tachi and tanto combination as opposed to a katana and wakizashi

Superb blade in excellent Edo polish, signed by Kiyomitsu, Edo, Shinto period, probably from Bizen province. A full suite of carved black buffalo horn mounts, and a pair of silver chrysanthemum applied menuki

Tanto are generally forged in hira-zukuri style (without ridgeline), meaning that their sides have no ridge line and are nearly flat, unlike the shinogi-zukuri structure of a katana. Some tanto have particularly thick cross-sections for armour-piercing duty, and are called yoroi toshi. The tantos primary use was a type of stabbing weapon, however, the blade could also be used for slashing as well. Some tanto were forged with a particularly thick cross section which was thought to aid in piercing the armour of enemies, this type of dagger would be called a yoroi toshi.

Blade 6.5 inches overall 11.5 inches in saya. Kept for many years originally stored in plain and simple shira saya, but its original koshirae, with chrysanthemum, the Japanese imperial mon in silver, were traced, and blade and koshirae reunited once more.

Code: 24554