The “Tatara” device used to refine iron sands into pig iron. The two bellows on either side needed to be constantly kept in motion for the process to work. Source: Tosaka, CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The finished product of the Tatara – Tamahagane, or Pig Iron. As you can probably guess, it still has a long way to go before it is ready for the battlefield. Source: Loulasedna, CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The “Mikazuki Munechika,” a tachi sword forged by the Yamashiro School sometime in the late 900s. Source: Sanjō Munechika, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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