A Interdisciplinary Study of Acient Swords with Inlay Characters

包括那些仅在记录中发现的剑，据信在日本已知有15把嵌有文字的剑，其中12把仍然存在：8把来自酷派时期(公元4-公元7世纪初)。从明日起(公元前7世纪中期至公元15年)的四把剑。剑本身是铁的，镶嵌的是金、银或铜的，上面写着制造日期、历史背景、主人的名字、吉祥的文字等等。这些剑具有巨大的史料价值。作者从四个方面对现存的15把剑进行了研究：发现地点的调查，铭文的文学分析，镶嵌技术的检验，以及镶嵌的冶金分析。从这些广泛的研究中，作者认为可以说有四件事：1.可以说，九把剑可以分为两类，一类是世代流传的剑，另一类是为一代地方统治者制作的剑。高风时期的刀剑出自中国、朝鲜半岛和日本；地位较高的外国刀剑被几代国王使用，而国产刀剑则由大和政府独家制造，呈献给地方统治者。高风时期的镶剑是政治、军事和经济力量的象征。除了皇帝的剑。在库芬时期之后，这些剑失去了政治和经济象征意义，但仍作为鼓舞人心的文物继续存在，鼓励胜利、健康和幸福。

Including those found only in records, it is believed that 15 swords with inlaid characters were known in Japan of which 12 are still extant : eight from the KOFUN period (4th - early 7th c. A.D.) and four from the ASUKA Period onward (the mid-7th c. - 15th c.A.D.).The swords themselves are of iron, and the inlays, telling the date of manufacture, the historical background, owner's name, auspicious words, and so on, are of gold, silver, or copper. These swords are of immense value as historical data.The present author has studied all fifteen extant swords in four ways : surveys of the sites where they were found, literary analyses of the inscriptions, examination of the inlay techniques used, and a metallurgical analysis of the inlaysFrom these extensive studies, the anthor thinks that four things may be said ;1. The nine sword dating from the KOFUN Period may be grouped into two categories : those handed down from generation to generation of kings, and those made for one generation of local rulers.2. The KOFUN Period swords were manufactured in China, the Korean peninsula, and Japan ; the foreigh-made swords, accorded higher status, were used by generations of kings, while the domestically produced swords were exclusively manufactured by the Yamato government for presentation to local rulers.3. The KOFUN Period inlaid swords were symbols of political, military and economic power.4. With the exception of the Emperor's sword. after the KOFUN Period these swords lost their political and economic symbolism, but continued as inspirational artifacts, encouraging victory, health, and happiness.