Citadel – Bamboo Wakizashi

Limited Edition Bamboo Wakizashi

Citadel’s swords and knives are completely hand-made one off customs made entirely in their small shop in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. We’ve asked them to make for us a few in the same style, but made in the same way as their custom swords. Crafted individually from start to finish, each one is of course a bit unique in it’s own way. Limited to just 20 swords, each is signed by the smith on the nakago with the sword number and comes with a matching certificate.

The “Wakizashi” or Short Sword was worn with the longer katana, when the pair matched in theme they were considered a Daisho. However, when the katana was surrendered upon entering a home the wakizashi was not, making it truly the side-arm of the Samurai!

The tsuba is hand cut and engraved from pure iron. The “nanako” or stippled pattern on the tsuba is accomplished by hand, quite a feat of patience with a stunning result. The tsuba also features “seki-gane”, metal inserts at the top and bottom of the hole for the blade to slip through. These are of a softer metal (copper) than the iron of the tsuba and allow easier shaping of the hole to perfectly fit the tsuba to the blade. Over time if this fit becomes loose or the tsuba is fitted to another blade the seki-gane may be adjusted easily to tighten it back up. This is a small detail usually only found on hand-made Japanese tsuba and is indicative of the level of care and craftsmanship given to these swords by Citadel.

The “tsuka” or handle and “saya” or scabbard are hand carved to fit each individual blade ensuring a proper fit. The handle is wrapped in genuine imported silk from Japan and tightly wrapped around the full same-gawa or ray skin wrap around the wooden core. The saya is lacquered in black to a nice semi-gloss finish with a ray skin wrap near the mouth of the saya to strengthen this area.

These are extremely limited in numbers to be produced (20 only!). Each blade is signed on the tang with the model and number and includes a stamped certificate of authenticity.