Kamisori

Japanese barbers. Photo by Felice Beato from 1868. On the left there is a barber using a kamisori to shave his face.

A kamisori (剃刀) is a traditional Japanese straight razor , the blade and handle of which are forged from one piece. The handle can be wrapped in rattan for better handling .

While western razors have a handle into which the blade can be folded, the blade of Kamisoris ends directly in the handle. In addition, Kamisoris differ from western razors by their shorter cutting edge.

The quality of a Kamisori depends on which steel has been used and which master forged it.

history

Kamisori came to Japan from China during the Asuka period (538 or 592-710) as part of the introduction of Buddhism . They were used to shave the tonsure of Buddhist monks.

About 150 years ago, at the beginning of the Meiji period (1868–1912), the samurai caste was abolished and the manufacture of katanas , the traditional long swords, was banned in Japan. When the swordsmiths lost their jobs as a result, they shifted their activities to the manufacture of everyday objects such as kitchen knives and the kamisoris. The basics, the special dexterity and the special skills of the sword smiths flowed into the manufacture of the Kamisoris.

Two heavily used kamisori. Rear view (ura). The curved line in the upper knife is not a Hamon line, but a curved attachment of the Tamahagane plate.

Manufacturing

Two kamisori. View of the typical profile from the front.

Traditionally produced Kamisoris are made from Tamahagane , a steel with a particularly high carbon content and therefore a very good cutting edge . The extraction of raw materials and steel alone is very time-consuming and can only be done by experienced specialists. In earlier times, the available steel was only supplied to specially selected blacksmiths, whose masters were able to manufacture a kamisori from this very difficult to forge steel.

Because the raw materials necessary for the extraction of Tamahagane are largely mined in Japan, various other steels are also used today.

In addition to forging by hand, Kamisori are now also manufactured in series.

construction

The blade of a Kamisori has two sides, an upper “Omote” and a lower “Ura”, whereby the steel used and the name of the blacksmith can be stamped on the Uraside. Tamahagane is used exclusively for the lower side, softer and more elastic iron is used for the upper side. Sharpening / polishing is essentially - unlike the European razor - in a ratio of 3: 1, i.e. H. 3 pushes on the Omote side and then 1 move on the Ura side. There are different opinions on this point, so some people also sharpen / polish in a ratio of 7: 2 to get the perfect edge.

Compared to a western razor, a kamisori has an asymmetrical blade shape and is usually only used with one side to the cheek.

literature

• Yasuoki Takeuchi: カ ミ ソ リ 史記: 貝殻 か ら 二枚 刃 ま で (The history and culture of shaving in Japan), Tokyo 1994, ISBN 9784822000660

Individual evidence

1. ↑ On this and the following cf. History and culture of shaving in Japan ( Memento of the original from August 24, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The  archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Review of the book of the same name by Yasuoki Takeuchi about Kamisori Club, last accessed on May 25, 2014.
2. ↑ On this and the following cf. A Kamisori Primer, dated October 10, 2011, via Sharpologist, last accessed May 25, 2014.