Kokuun (黒雲): Black Clouds
Kokuun refers to the black clouds that herald a storm. In Japanese tradition, it is within these dark masses that dragons dwell, ready to emerge with rain and thunder.
This wakizashi embodies that atmosphere entirely: a black guard pierced with cloud scrolls, a scabbard draped in raised dragons and clouds, and a blade whose spine is as dark as the sky before a tempest.
A two-tone T10 steel blade with bo-hi
The blade is forged in T10 steel, a high-carbon steel prized for its hardness. It follows a shinogi-zukuri geometry with a chū-kissaki tip, and features a bo-hi that runs along its length and stops before the yokote.
It is mirror-polished along the edge and black across the body and spine, with a wave line marking the boundary between the two. This line is a decorative hamon produced through a surface treatment.
A black mounting with cloud-scroll motifs
The eight-lobed, flower-shaped rinka-gata tsuba is crafted in blackened alloy. It is pierced with cloud-scroll openwork (sukashi), with a polished surface (migaki) and a rounded rim (maru-mimi). A gilt brass seppa accompanies it.
The blackened fuchi and kashira are deliberately understated. The handle pairs wood with faux black ray skin beneath a black leather wrap (kawa-maki), accented with gilt menuki. The smooth gilt copper ichimai habaki bears a gilt floral kamon.
A scabbard of raised dragons and clouds
The saya is crafted in solid wood, adorned with a raised relief of dragons and clouds across its entire length, lending a distinctive texture to the touch. It has no kurikata: a black-and-white sageo is tied directly to the scabbard.
Dimensions and handling
With a 51 cm blade and an overall length of 78 cm, Kokuun carries the proportions of a wakizashi, the shorter companion to the katana. Its 23 cm leather-wrapped handle offers a firm one-handed grip. At 1 kg, it remains highly manoeuvrable. It measures 80 cm in its scabbard, a format that shows its relief decoration to its full advantage.
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