[Dustin Faulkner]

Hello Everyone:

I've been wanting to share with you how we recently had a modest Samurai exhibition at the San Antonio Mueum of Art. It was titled "Lethal Beauty." It was a big treat for me for I had never seen Samurai artifacts in person before - only in books.

There were at least four original suits of Samurai armour. I could not help wondering who wore them and how skilled they must have been. The detail was amazing and, of course, they looked vicious and intimidating even while only being displayed.

There was a short wakizashi (?) made by Yoshi Yoshihara, but there were several more katanas made by historical swordsmiths from the Edo and Tokugawa periods. Putting aside the fame and effectiveness of the Katana, what struck me was I was looking at sword blades that were forged several centuries ago (one was from the 1600s I think) and they still had a mirror polish and perfect edges. Amazing.

There were a couple of original Japanese screens consisting of several panels too. One commerated a battle by simply having the flag of each clan from both armies painted on the panels. I took the time to count all 525 clans that fought. It must have been a huge battle. Interestingly, one clan's flag looked exactly like the modern J.A.L. airline crane bird logo except it was blue. Makes me wonder.

Anyway ... if any of you have a chance to visit a museum with Samurai artifacts, I strongly encourage it.

I can't help but wonder if there is a way for foreigners to travel to Japan, watch a sword be made using historical methods, and be allowed to purchase it. I deeply respect the Katana sword and it would be fulfilling to own a real one.

Thank you.

[Eric S]

[Foong Chen Hong]

[Josh Maxwell]

The Detroit Institute of Art will be having an exhibit titled, "Samurai Beyond the Sword," in March and April I believe.