Product Review - Ebony Dragon Bokken by Artha Gallery Date: Mon, 6 Nov 2000 13:55:53 -0500 Reply-To: Japanese Sword Art Mailing List Sender: Japanese Sword Art Mailing List From: Bill Mears Subject: Ebony Dragon Bokken I was recently lucky enough to acquire a new bokkuto and in the name of truth, justice and the budo, here is a brief review of it. "Artha Gallery is pleased to present its line of high-performance, presentation-grade bokken. These bokken are made of rare, premium quality ebony, cocobolo and molave, beautiful exotic woods that can withstand the rigors of kendo, iaido, aikido and other Japanese sword arts." So speaks the opening paragraph of Artha Gallery's website. The site itself features separate pages for the Ebony and Molave bokken, a yet-to-be completed swords page that promised 'live blades', a rather sparse links page and a very handy currency conversion link. The bokkuto itself is beautifully made. Mine is a very dark (as near as black as I've seen) ebony and smooth as silk. In fact it's so smooth, that if it wasn't for the carved tsuka, I might have trouble holding it! I have heard it said that a carved tsuka can be uncomfortable, but the carving (a dragon on both ura and omote) is deep enough to improve grip while the edges are smooth enough not to be uncomfortable when 'swinging'. The overall length is 40", the tsuka is a tad over 10" long and it weighs in at a hefty 1.75 lbs. As to swinging- I found mine a little tip heavy, but given the density of the material, I'm not surprised. By adjusting my technique I found it quite manageable (I have noticed the same thing with 'heavy' swords- if technique is applied in place of strength, they work a lot better). I'm no wood expert, so I can't comment on whether the products can "withstand the rigors of kendo, iaido, aikido and other Japanese sword arts", but the quality is definitely presentation standard. That said, if I were buying a bokken to whack against others, I would probably fall back on something cheaper and not as beautiful. Mine will have a place of honour in the dojo (the dragon is a nice personal touch for me), especially given the price tag - no going up into the mountains to beat trees with this baby! If you are looking for a high-end product to present to a visiting instructor, as a gift to someone special or just as a treat for yourself, I think that Artha Gallery's bokken will probably fit the bill. Canadian customers may balk at having to pay all the extra duties etc, but if US customers can get theirs shipped domestically, then it's a beautiful piece of craftsmanship at a reasonable price (and I really DO like the carving!) Bill Mears Yugenkan Dojo, Canada http://www.fortunecity.com/olympia/greene/349