Kirk here with another story about MATSUNAGA Genrokuro (松永源六郎), who has, for many years, been educating groups of foreigners as well as Japanese about traditional sword-making methods and swordsmanship. In this picture, the woman attempting tameshigiri (the art of target test cutting) is from France. Unfortunately, this article is behind a paywall but I’m glad to see Mr. Matsunaga getting recognition in the media nonetheless. The headline points out that he has been doing this for 40 years now. I have enjoyed visiting him, as I know that many other readers of this page have.
I read in the Asahi Shimbun (to which my wife and I subscribe) that he received the “Prefectural Culture Award” (熊本県民文化賞) in 2007.. Here’s a ChatGPT translation of the summary of the award (taken from the Prefecture’s website): “a commendation project conducted by the prefecture, aimed at recognizing and encouraging the achievements of those who have contributed to the promotion of the prefecture’s culture. This initiative serves to foster cultural activities in various parts of the prefecture, ultimately contributing to the enhancement of the prefecture’s culture.”
I’ll put a link or two to previous posts about Mr. Matsunaga in a comment.
