Tamahagane
Alloys · Rare · Medieval
Steel smelted from iron sand and charcoal in a clay tatara furnace, over a day and a half to three days, the furnace master (murage) deciding the mix of sands. The furnace is broken open at the end; the best steel lies at the edges of the bloom and is told by its colour, the bright silver pieces going to the swordsmith.
Identity
- Source
- Japanese sword steel, smelted in the tatara
- Composition
- Iron, Carbon ~0.5-1.5%
- Over time
- Smelted from iron sand and charcoal in a clay tatara furnace over 36 to 72 hours; most analysed Japanese swords hold 0.5 to 0.7% carbon.
- Also known as
- Jewel steel
- Ores, before industry and since
- Goethite (Iron), Hematite (Iron), Limonite (Iron), Magnetite (Iron), Siderite (Iron)
- Comes from
- Shimane (Izumo), Japan
Physical Properties
- Appearance
- Near-black folded steel with a visible hamon, a wavy temper line of silver-grey along the edge
- Luster
- Metallic
- Density
- 7.8 g/cm³
- Melting point
- 1400 °C
- Boiling point
- 2700 °C
- Lighter
- Glassforged
- Denser
- Steel
- Magnetism
- Ferromagnetic
- Electrical conductivity
- Medium
Mechanical Properties
- Mohs hardness
- 6.5
- Tensile strength
- 2000 MPa
- Softer
- Titanium
- Harder
- Vanadium
- Workability
- Difficult
- Brittleness
- Moderate
- Malleability
- Low
- Ductility
- Low
Chemical Properties
- Corrosion resistance
- Low
- Reactivity
- Moderate
Lore & Narrative
Japanese swordsmiths forge their blades from it; most analysed swords hold 0.5 to 0.7% carbon.
- Notable uses
- Katana, wakizashi, ritual blades
- Forge uses
- Blades, Ritual weapons
- Worldbuilding traits
- Sacred, Spiritual, Folded, Japanese
Sources
- Tamahagane, Wikipedia
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