Research on Korean Swords
Sept 20, 2011 5:38:58 GMT
Post by Deleted on Sept 20, 2011 5:38:58 GMT
There doesn't seem to be much information available online concerning Korean swords or weapons in general. I'm writing this mini-article to help anyone that might be interested in Korean weapons and military tactics as well as further my own understanding of them.
As you might have gathered from my username, I am of Korean ancestry. However, I tried to avoid any hint of nationalism when writing this article to provide as clear an image of actual Korean weapons as possible. I'm not the best writer, so give me some feedback and thoughts on how to improve this little writing.
First, here are the sources that I used. If you don't trust Wikipedia, then take a look at the citations... at the bottom of the Wikipedia article... the information there appears to be reasonably accurate.
I didn't properly cite every fact that I used but well... I'm not writing an official reference book and they are below if you don't trust me. 
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_sword
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_armour
www.swordsofkorea.com/main.htm
www.arscives.com/historysteel/koreanarticle.htm
www.arscives.com/historysteel/ko ... rdlist.htm
gregorybrundage.tripod.com/korea ... story.html
www.arscives.com/bladesign/koreanswordmaking.htm
Here are some other sources that I didn't entirely trust, but should give a general idea of what Korean weapons and armor look like.
www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=56464
gunsight.jp/c/english/e-k-Silla.htm
www.itatkd.com/swordinfo.html#getsword
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Part I
History and Overview of Swords in Korea
1. What are the origins of Korean swords?
Korea is believed to have begun producing steel swords somewhere between the 8th and 4th century BCE. Korea was blessed in that its iron had an unusually high carbon content when compared to the iron of Japan and China. The first Japanese swords likely used iron imported from Korea. Differential hardening and steel making techniques were brought into the country by the Chinese and later the Mongolians. The curved blade in Korea could have been of either Chinese or Mongolian origins, though it is generally accepted that the curved Mongolian swords had the greatest influence over both Korean and Japanese sword makers. Japanese swords did not have much influence over the early development of Korean swords, quite the opposite in fact. Initially Korean swords developed independently, but the ring-pommel sword typical of ancient Korea appears to be of Chinese origins. Until the Chosen Dynasty Korean sword makers were considered among the best in the region. During that period, neo-Confucianistic attitudes relegated sword makers to the lowest ranks of society, and the technology stagnated. Some of Korea's master sword smiths even left Korea as a result.
2. What makes an authentic Korean sword?
This question is difficult to answer for various reasons and the answer is of course dependent on the time period and region. There are a few key reasons why so little is known about traditional Korean weapons:
-Korean swords were typically made for the user and often unique pieces. There were some attempts to standardize sword models in the Korean armies, but in general they did not follow any sort of set model. The closest that there ever was to a standard sword for a united Korea was the Hwando introduced by King Munjong during the Joseon dynasty around 1450 CE.
-Swords (particularly during the Joseon Dynasty) were not seen as spiritual objects but as disposable weapons. After Korea adopted Confucianism the noble class did not pursue swordsmanship at all. Therefore, the Koreans had no qualms with adopting swords directly from their neighbors and forgoing traditional swords when they deemed it necessary. Within Korea itself there exists a general disdain for the martial arts and particularly swords that dates back to the Joseon dynasty, most likely introduced by Confucianism and Buddhism. There has been a revival of the martial arts and sword art in recent years, but much of the information is, tragically, lost forever.
-During the Japanese occupations of Korea, most of the ancient and traditional Korean swords were either destroyed or brought back to Japan, where they were likely claimed as Japanese designs or simply destroyed. China and Japan both exerted great influence over Korea and indeed many Korean swords are copies of weapons from those countries. That said, swords of purely Korean invention did exist. Additionally, Korean versions of foreign swords sometimes differed from the originals in stylization and use.
To summarize, it is the historical Korean attitude towards swords and the immense variety in their design and influence that makes them difficult to identify. As mentioned above, time period and region are both important but for simplicity's sake we'll focus primarily on early to mid Joseon Dynasty swords (swords of the late Joseon dynasty and the modern era are almost always completely Japanese).
The basic identifying qualities of Joseon Dynasty sword (or of Korean swords in general) are as follows:
-Most of the swords within the Joseon dynasty were designed for single hand or hand and a half techniques, though many of them had grips long enough for a comfortable two handed grip.
-Korean swords were generally lighter and shorter than their Japanese and Chinese counterparts.
-Though hilt construction varied, Korean swords typically could not be disassembled, due to the fact that they were viewed as military tools. Most blades had only a single hole in the tang, through which a metal tube or rivet was placed to secure the hilt. Sometimes a copper peg was placed through a second hole directly above the guard to further secure the construction. A tassel was often passed through the tube as either a badge of rank or an ornament. Korean swords have also been found peened, or with excess metal at the end of the tang folded over to secure the hilt. The use of mekugi is not historically accurate.
-Korean military swords typically lacked fullers and were thinner than other swords in the region. This is a generalization as many officer's and ceremonial swords during the Joseon Dynasty had fullers; designs varied greatly.
-The curvature of the swords varied too greatly for a generalization to be made. Many Korean swords had completely straight blades, while others were slightly curved. The curvature of the blade did not, as mentioned above, originate from the Japanese and did not follow any standard model.
-The edges of ancient swords was either completely straight or smoothly rounded, sometimes an appleseed edge. During the Joseon Dynasty swords were found with triangular, pentagonal, and hexagonal cross sections. Blade geometry is tricky, as with curvature there was simply an immense variety to be found in Korean blades.
-Ancient Korean swords were worn on the back for transport or simply held in the hand. By the Joseon Dynasty, most were worn at the waist on a belt. Elaborate suspension systems began to develop as well, though they depended on the individual wearer.
-Korean swords were usually wrapped in either rayskin, leather, cotton, silk, bare or painted wood, or even metal. Japanese style handle wrapping were sometimes seen after the initial Japanese invasions or Korea, but did not usually follow the traditional Japanese model.
That is the end of my mini-article for now. I hope that found it informative, and please leave feedback and thoughts. I plan on adding to this as well as provide information on Korean armor, pole arms... you name it!
As you might have gathered from my username, I am of Korean ancestry. However, I tried to avoid any hint of nationalism when writing this article to provide as clear an image of actual Korean weapons as possible. I'm not the best writer, so give me some feedback and thoughts on how to improve this little writing.
First, here are the sources that I used. If you don't trust Wikipedia, then take a look at the citations... at the bottom of the Wikipedia article... the information there appears to be reasonably accurate.
I didn't properly cite every fact that I used but well... I'm not writing an official reference book and they are below if you don't trust me. 
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_sword
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_armour
www.swordsofkorea.com/main.htm
www.arscives.com/historysteel/koreanarticle.htm
www.arscives.com/historysteel/ko ... rdlist.htm
gregorybrundage.tripod.com/korea ... story.html
www.arscives.com/bladesign/koreanswordmaking.htm
Here are some other sources that I didn't entirely trust, but should give a general idea of what Korean weapons and armor look like.
www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=56464
gunsight.jp/c/english/e-k-Silla.htm
www.itatkd.com/swordinfo.html#getsword
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Part I
History and Overview of Swords in Korea
1. What are the origins of Korean swords?
Korea is believed to have begun producing steel swords somewhere between the 8th and 4th century BCE. Korea was blessed in that its iron had an unusually high carbon content when compared to the iron of Japan and China. The first Japanese swords likely used iron imported from Korea. Differential hardening and steel making techniques were brought into the country by the Chinese and later the Mongolians. The curved blade in Korea could have been of either Chinese or Mongolian origins, though it is generally accepted that the curved Mongolian swords had the greatest influence over both Korean and Japanese sword makers. Japanese swords did not have much influence over the early development of Korean swords, quite the opposite in fact. Initially Korean swords developed independently, but the ring-pommel sword typical of ancient Korea appears to be of Chinese origins. Until the Chosen Dynasty Korean sword makers were considered among the best in the region. During that period, neo-Confucianistic attitudes relegated sword makers to the lowest ranks of society, and the technology stagnated. Some of Korea's master sword smiths even left Korea as a result.
2. What makes an authentic Korean sword?
This question is difficult to answer for various reasons and the answer is of course dependent on the time period and region. There are a few key reasons why so little is known about traditional Korean weapons:
-Korean swords were typically made for the user and often unique pieces. There were some attempts to standardize sword models in the Korean armies, but in general they did not follow any sort of set model. The closest that there ever was to a standard sword for a united Korea was the Hwando introduced by King Munjong during the Joseon dynasty around 1450 CE.
-Swords (particularly during the Joseon Dynasty) were not seen as spiritual objects but as disposable weapons. After Korea adopted Confucianism the noble class did not pursue swordsmanship at all. Therefore, the Koreans had no qualms with adopting swords directly from their neighbors and forgoing traditional swords when they deemed it necessary. Within Korea itself there exists a general disdain for the martial arts and particularly swords that dates back to the Joseon dynasty, most likely introduced by Confucianism and Buddhism. There has been a revival of the martial arts and sword art in recent years, but much of the information is, tragically, lost forever.
-During the Japanese occupations of Korea, most of the ancient and traditional Korean swords were either destroyed or brought back to Japan, where they were likely claimed as Japanese designs or simply destroyed. China and Japan both exerted great influence over Korea and indeed many Korean swords are copies of weapons from those countries. That said, swords of purely Korean invention did exist. Additionally, Korean versions of foreign swords sometimes differed from the originals in stylization and use.
To summarize, it is the historical Korean attitude towards swords and the immense variety in their design and influence that makes them difficult to identify. As mentioned above, time period and region are both important but for simplicity's sake we'll focus primarily on early to mid Joseon Dynasty swords (swords of the late Joseon dynasty and the modern era are almost always completely Japanese).
The basic identifying qualities of Joseon Dynasty sword (or of Korean swords in general) are as follows:
-Most of the swords within the Joseon dynasty were designed for single hand or hand and a half techniques, though many of them had grips long enough for a comfortable two handed grip.
-Korean swords were generally lighter and shorter than their Japanese and Chinese counterparts.
-Though hilt construction varied, Korean swords typically could not be disassembled, due to the fact that they were viewed as military tools. Most blades had only a single hole in the tang, through which a metal tube or rivet was placed to secure the hilt. Sometimes a copper peg was placed through a second hole directly above the guard to further secure the construction. A tassel was often passed through the tube as either a badge of rank or an ornament. Korean swords have also been found peened, or with excess metal at the end of the tang folded over to secure the hilt. The use of mekugi is not historically accurate.
-Korean military swords typically lacked fullers and were thinner than other swords in the region. This is a generalization as many officer's and ceremonial swords during the Joseon Dynasty had fullers; designs varied greatly.
-The curvature of the swords varied too greatly for a generalization to be made. Many Korean swords had completely straight blades, while others were slightly curved. The curvature of the blade did not, as mentioned above, originate from the Japanese and did not follow any standard model.
-The edges of ancient swords was either completely straight or smoothly rounded, sometimes an appleseed edge. During the Joseon Dynasty swords were found with triangular, pentagonal, and hexagonal cross sections. Blade geometry is tricky, as with curvature there was simply an immense variety to be found in Korean blades.
-Ancient Korean swords were worn on the back for transport or simply held in the hand. By the Joseon Dynasty, most were worn at the waist on a belt. Elaborate suspension systems began to develop as well, though they depended on the individual wearer.
-Korean swords were usually wrapped in either rayskin, leather, cotton, silk, bare or painted wood, or even metal. Japanese style handle wrapping were sometimes seen after the initial Japanese invasions or Korea, but did not usually follow the traditional Japanese model.
That is the end of my mini-article for now. I hope that found it informative, and please leave feedback and thoughts. I plan on adding to this as well as provide information on Korean armor, pole arms... you name it!
I'm assuming that the blade would be relatively thin, I wonder what it was used for...
