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Lethal Elegance
The Art of Samurai Sword Fittings
Joe Earle
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Softcover $37.50 $33.75 Buy Now
As the soul of the samurai, the sword is famously both the symbol and instrument
of Japanese military prowess. Less known, at least in the West, is its role as a
fashion accessory or status symbol. And more than the weapon itself, it was the
sword's metal fittings that reflected the complexities of samurai life, from codes of
honor to flamboyant leisure - and that remain among the most sophisticated and
accomplished metalwork ever created. Lethal Elegance presents 150 of these
remarkable sword fittings, and is one of the few books in a western language to
focus on their styles and techniques. It discusses the visual effects achieved with
different alloys, the evolution of fittings following changes in warfare, the
symbolism of motifs, and standards for connoisseurship. Nearly all these fittings
were once owned by trained swordsmen, and the weapons they ornamented could
surely inflict fatal wounds. But their extraordinary variety and beauty also reveal
them as wonders of self-expression and personal style.
About the Author
3. Joe Earle is Vice-President of Japan Society, New York, and Director of Japan
Society Gallery. He was formerly Chair of the Department of Art of Asia, Oceania,
and Africa at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, where he initiated several gallery
and documentation projects, including the digitization and release to the web of
the Museum's world-famous collection of Japanese woodblock prints. He has
presented many exhibitions in Great Britain and the United STates, among them
"Visions of Japan" (1991) and "Bye Bye Kitty!!! Between Heaven and Hell in
Contemporary Japanese Art" (2011). He has also written, edited, and translated
many books on Japanese art and culture, including Netsuke: Fantasy and Reality in
Japanese Miniature Sculpture; The Japanese Sword; Japanese Art and Design; Flower
Bronzes of Japan; The Index of Inro Artists; New Bamboo: Contemporary Japanese Masters;
and Buriki: Japanese Tin Toys from the Golden Age of the American Automobile.
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