For many centuries, the sword was the main weapon and symbol of the Japanese warrior, called bushi or samurai. Sword skills such as kenjutsu or iaijutsu were highly regarded, and over time many hundreds if not thousands of schools or ryuha that focused on swordsmanship would emerge.

Classical Swordsmanship of Japan is the most exhaustive and authoritative work on the subject of kenjutsu and iaijutsu available in any of the major Western languages to date. This masterpiece by Serge Mol covers more than 800 years of swordsmanship history, provides historical details of some 49 sword schools and contains references to well over 250. Additionally, this work includes information of no loss than 280 classical sword masters that played a role in the history of kenjutsu and iaijutsu.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Serge Mol is one of the foremost Western authorities in the field of Japan's traditional martial arts. He started his martial arts training some thirty years ago and presently holds the ranks of menkyo and menkyo kaiden in a number of classical schools. His earlier publications Classical Fighting Arts of Japan: A Complete Guide to Kory Jujutsu and Classical Weaponry of Japan: Special Weapons and Tactics ot the Martial Arts -both best sellers-- have set completely new standards in their genre

Mol lived in Japan for several years, devoting most of his time to training and research. Having lived in Japan as a member of a traditional Kyoto family of samurai origin has provided him with a unique perspective on the subject. Additionally Mol has an extensive collection of Edo period documents about martial arts, weaponry and samurai and ninja history and culture.

320 pages