Echizen, Tosa, Miki, Sakai... cutlery production areas scattered throughout the country. Its roots vary from Japanese swords to carpentry tools to cutlery used in forestry. However, what they have in common is that they are essential tools for daily life. Although this is not limited to cutlery, the element that the Japanese have sought from tools since ancient times is how long they can be used, in other words, in a game of "disposable items" that is prevalent in modern society.
Knives are made by hammering steel and soft iron together using a unique Japanese technique called fire forging. It is sharp, strong, sticky, and does not easily chip. It is the crystallization of the skills and wisdom of our ancestors created hundreds of years ago. This has not changed even today in the information society and AI era. This is why Japanese blacksmiths are considered artists in other countries, where knives and manufacturing methods like Japan did not exist.
Furthermore, Japan is a major country in terms of kitchen knives, and the variety of knives available is unparalleled anywhere else in the world. This is a product of the rich nature and the food culture that has developed with the benefit of it, and at the same time, it has the ultimate in functionality and beauty. Regardless of the type, if you take good care of your knives, they will last a lifetime, or last for two or three generations.
In recent years, there has been a wide variety of designs such as ripples made of multi-layered steel, Damascus patterns, and hammer marks, which please the eye of those who choose them. Their beauty and high quality are highly praised overseas, and knives made by popular blacksmiths continue to be in short supply.