Kokutan Tanto (黒檀) – Ebony

Kokutan (黒檀): ebony

Kokutan (ebony) ranks among the most precious woods in existence: exceptionally dense, deeply black, it takes a polish until it gleams like stone. In Japan, it has long been reserved for objects of the highest order, from musical instruments to the finest cabinetwork.

This tanto is devoted to it entirely: handle and scabbard are carved from solid ebony, with no lacquer, no wrapping and no guard. The wood alone (polished, grained) is the source of all the piece’s beauty.

A T10 steel blade with a genuine gunome midare hamon

The blade is forged from T10 steel, a high-carbon steel prized for its hardness. Clay tempering brings forth a genuine gunome midare hamon, sharply contrasted between the blade’s satin body and its brighter edge.

The tip is rendered without a yokote, producing a fluid, uninterrupted line, and the blade carries no bo-hi.

A solid ebony aikuchi mounting

This tanto is mounted in the aikuchi style, guardless, where handle and scabbard meet directly to form a continuous, unbroken silhouette. The handle, in solid ebony and unwrapped, lets the natural grain speak for itself.

The only visible metal fitting is the ichimai habaki in gilt copper, decorated with a flower in relief surrounded by four birds against a blackened granulated (nanako) ground. A gilt brass seppa accompanies it.

A high-gloss polished ebony scabbard

The saya is crafted in high-gloss polished solid ebony, its dark grain visible throughout, with neither kurikata nor ornament. The koiguchi and kojiri are likewise in ebony, making the scabbard a study in a single material. Once sheathed, the tanto resembles a polished ebony rod, an object of understated elegance.

Dimensions and handling

With a 33 cm blade and an overall length of 55 cm, the Kokutan is a tanto of generous proportions. Its 17 cm handle (smooth, dense, naturally weighted) sits comfortably in one hand. At 0.7 kg, it remains light to carry. Sheathed, it measures 57 cm, a discreet format that makes it well suited to display, allowing the beauty of the wood to take centre stage.