The is one of
three legendary Japanese spears created by the famed swordsmith Sengo Masazane, said to be wielded by the ''
daimyō
were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and no ...
''
Honda Tadakatsu
, also called Honda Heihachirō (本多 平八郎) was a Japanese samurai, general, and daimyo of the late Sengoku through early Edo periods, who served Tokugawa Ieyasu.
Honda Tadakatsu was one of the Tokugawa Four Heavenly Kings (Shitennō) a ...
, a leading general of
Tokugawa Ieyasu
Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...
.
Name
The spear derives its name from the myth that a
dragonfly
A dragonfly is a flying insect belonging to the infraorder Anisoptera below the order Odonata. About 3,000 extant species of dragonflies are known. Most are tropical, with fewer species in temperate regions. Loss of wetland habitat threat ...
landed on its blade and was instantly cut in two. Thus ''tonbo'' (
Japanese for "dragonfly") and ''kiri'' (Japanese for "cutting"), translating this spear's name as "Dragonfly Cutter".
History
The weapon, along with
Nihongō and
Otegine, is listed as one of "three great spears" in the ''Kyōhō Meibutsucho'', a listing of famous Koto blades made before the
Nanbokucho period and compiled by the
Hon'ami family during the
Kyōhō era (1716–1735).
The Tonbokiri is owned by a private individual and is on loan to the
Sano Art Museum for its collection.
Three Great Spears of Japan.
The Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum “Nagoya Touken World”
References
Spears of Japan
Individual weapons
Shizuoka Prefecture designated tangible cultural property
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