Year: 2020

We would like to inform you that there is a change in the Scheduling on the exhibition Sale Events.

• The scheduled 2nd Koriyama Touken Ichi from April 24th, 25th and 26th
  ⇒Has been Postponed to May 29th, 30th, and 31st.

• The scheduled 3rd Saitama Touken Ichi from May 29th, 30th, and 31st
  ⇒Cancelled

Regarding the exhibition and sales event “Touken Ichi” held monthly:

The “3rd Koriyama Touken ichi” that was scheduled to be held in April this month is being rented at the venue (Big Palette Fukushima) and doubled in size, and efforts are being made to improve ventilation, to avoid crowding, and closeness. It has been postponed for 3 days.

The “2nd Saitama Touken Ichi” scheduled to be held in May next month was decided to be canceled in consideration of the location (Omiya, Saitama City) and the venue (meeting room for rent).

In Touken Matsumoto, the “Noda-kai sword auction” for sword dealers, which has been held twice a month since January 1992 continuously were closed on April 3rd and 19th. Probably on May 3rd as well, it will be closed until the declaration of emergency is resolved.

In addition, we planned to hold the “Tsukuba Taikai” every year at the Hotel Edoya in Mt. Tsukuba, but this year we decided to cancel it.

I am distressed when considering the economic activities of the swords dealer, 40 participants who purchase and sell at the Noda-kai sword auction. However, the situation has changed to stop the spread of the new Corona virus infection, and people’s feelings are becoming more serious day by day, so I think that it is now time to consider our health and safety.

I hope that the spread of the Corona virus infection will end as soon as possible and that it will start to decline and that the world will return to normal.

We were able to conclude the 9th Chiba Touken Ichi safely. The spread of the new Corona virus has been reported every day by the media, so I considered canceling the event before it was held, just in case. Under such circumstances, there were many requests from the enthusiasts who wanted to come to the venue so we decided to do our best and tried avoiding the spread of the virus by thoroughly ventilated the venue, disinfecting our hands with alcohol, and wearing masks. It was a relief to hear from visitors that the atmosphere was good, and that in terms of income and expenditure we did well. However, it was an event that made me consider about managing such events at this time more than ever. The next event will be in October, half a year from now. We hope the Corona virus pandemic will be over and we can do our best to be positive.

Touken Matsumoto visited Kishu, Wakayama, the hometown of our sword polisher, Yoichiro Kawakami. Kawakami’s parents guided us to the Kumano Kodo and Nachi Katsuura, which are world heritage sites. We stayed and relaxed on the island in the Kumano villa Hotel, which is famous for an outdoor bath with a view of the sea. Also, we were able to say hello to Mr. Sadakazu Adachi, a swordsmith living in Ryujin Village, Tanabe City, Wakayama Prefecture. Luckily, during the time of our visit, there was a sword exhibition for “Contemporary Japanese Swords Exhibition” where the swordsmiths of the Kinki region participated. Mr. Adachi was also able to explain more about forging as we viewed the swords at the exhibition, including his one. All of our staff had a great time and were refreshed.

The Chiba TV’s morning news program of “Shakkito” introduced Touken Matsumoto shop on TV.  It was set to broadcast on the morning of February 28 (Friday) “Shakkito! Outing Information” section that introduces local shops. A director, a reporter, a cameraman, and  an assistant visited the store and filmed for about two hours. I tried to convey the charm of Japanese swords in an easy-to-understand manner, but I was nervous and I couldn’t put together a good story. I laugh at myself when the conversation with the reporter became awkward. I believe that the director will edit well from a viewer’s perspective.