Lethal Elegance
Publisher: MFA Publications
Published: December 2, 2004
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 250
ISBN-13: 9780878466795
Subjects: History Of Art / Art & Design Styles; Sword mountings; General; Exhibition Catalogs; Metal Arts And Crafts; Art & Art Instruction; Sword guards; Art; Japan; Design - Decorative; Art / Design / Decorative; Catalogs; Swords; Collections, Catalogs, Exhibitions - General; Metal Work
Description: "As the soul of the samurai, the sword is famously both the symbol and the 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."--BOOK JACKET.