Bisentō

Bisento (Méi jiāndāo; 眉尖刀) from the Wǔjīng Zǒngyào (武經總要)

A bisentō (眉尖刀, 'brow blade')[1] is a polearm used in feudal Japan. The bisentō has various descriptions, "a double-edged long sword with a thick truncated blade",[2] "a spear-like weapon with a blade at the end that resembles a scimitar",[3] "a polearm resembling a glaive, with a long, heavy haft and a heavy, curved blade".[4] The bisentō is said to have been used by ninja and peasants.[2]

Depictions of this weapon can be found in the Chinese military compilations the Wǔ jīng zǒng yào, Sāncái tú huì, the Wǔbèi zhì, and many others,[5] though no artifact representations currently exist of this implement.

See also

References

  1. ^ The Way of the Ninja: Secret Techniques, Masaaki Hatsumi, Ben Jones, Translated by Ben Jones, Kodansha International, 2004 ISBN 9784770028051 P.204
  2. ^ a b Handbook to life in medieval and early modern Japan, William E. Deal, Oxford University Press, 2007, ISBN 978-0-19-533126-4 P.162
  3. ^ Tuttle dictionary of the martial arts of Korea, China & Japan, Daniel Kogan, Sun-Jin Kim Editor Sun-Jin Kim, Compiled by Daniel Kogan, Sun-Jin Kim, Contributor Sun-Jin Kim, Tuttle Publishing, 1996, ISBN 978-0-8048-2016-5 P.37
  4. ^ Ninja: The Invisible Assassins, Japanese Arts Series, Andrew Adams, Black Belt Communications, 1970, ISBN 9780897500302 P.52
  5. ^ "Kukishinden-ryu Bisento". Classical Martial Arts Research Academy. 2017-11-11. Retrieved 2019-04-03.


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