Dear All,
Two replies to my Namban Tetsu post on other lists may be of interest to some Samurai History listeros. I copy them below FYI. One is from Dr John P. Lissenden (author of "The Namban Group of Japanese Sword Guards: A Reappraisal" -
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Namban-Group-Japanese-Sword-Guards/dp/1554043654/sr=1-20/qid=1172019544/ref=sr_1_20/203-3814316-7928767?ie=UTF8&s=books). The other is from Dr. Philip Vos Fellman.
I also noted a large number of new books about Japan on amazon
http://www.amazon.co.uk/s?ie=UTF8&rh=n%3A271274%2Cp_3%3A%C2%A330%20-%20%C2%A350&page=1
Regards,
Barry Thomas.
:::::::::::::: CROSS-POSTING FROM NIHONTOSTUDY LIST ::::::::::::::
----- Original Message -----
From: Dr John P Lissenden
To: nihontostudy@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, February 20, 2007 10:04 PM
Subject: [nihontostudy] Re: NAMBAN TETSU
Dear Barry
I was very interested by the article that you posted on namban tetsu,
but am a little unhappy about the implied supposition that cannon from
the 'De Liefde' were the original source of this metal.
I had believed that bronze - a mixture of 90% copper and 10% tin - was
the preferred metal used for the casting of cannon. Although cast-iron
cannon became available ca 1550, these were much more difficult to
cast, and bronze remained the metal of choice until the mid to late
C17. Since the 'De Liefde' arrived in Kyushu in 1600, is it not highly
likely that its cannon were of bronze rather than of iron?
Is there an expert on cannon out there somewhere who can clarify this
point for me?
Regards, John L.
--- In nihontostudy@yahoogroups.com, "Barry Thomas" wrote:
>
> All,
>
> I've just discovered this little gem about the history of Namban
tetsu (foreign steel) in Japanese history and the involvement of the
Dutch V.O.C. Company. Namban tetsu was used in the making of swords
and so recorded on the sword tang.
>
> http://tokensugita.com/NT.htm
>
> Regards,
>
> Barry Thomas.
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----- Original Message -----
From: "Dr. Philip Vos Fellman" <shirogitsune99@...>
To: <token_kenkyu_kai@...>
Sent: Wednesday, February 21, 2007 11:33 AM
Subject: Re: NAMBAN TETSU
Hi All:
You can get a better picture of Japan's comparative
trade position, in part from a book I found in the
Cornell University library (actually translated into
English believe it or not) "Japan Must Fight Britain"
by Lt. Commander Tota Isshimaru, Imperial Japanese
Navy, 1926. A lot of good discussion on the British
use of Singapore to promote trade monopolies.
Cheers,
Phil
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