Nagao Kanekoma hails from Miki City in Hyogo Prefecture, the birthplace of Japan’s traditional iron-forging techniques.
These methods emerged around the 20th year of the Meiji era, when blacksmiths began producing knives for the general public. Among the earliest pioneers were Murakami-san and Komataro Nagao-san.

In 1897, merchant Tasaburo Shigematsu brought back from Kagoshima a folding knife with a tail-like lever. Inspired by this design, the blacksmiths of Miki—including the Nagao family—started producing similar knives. Around the same time, the craft transitioned from single-bevel to double-bevel blade structures, which was revolutionary for the era.

The folding knife soon became known as the Higonokami Knife, gaining immense popularity throughout Japan—even Emperor Taisho owned one. In 1902, the Higonokami Knife Association was established, at its peak comprising about 40 member companies and over 200 craftsmen.

However, the rise of low-quality imitations and the arrival of new technologies (such as imported knives and electric pencil sharpeners) caused sales and popularity to decline by around 1955. Almost all Higonokami craftsmen went out of business or shifted industries—leaving Nagao Kanekoma Seisakusho as the sole surviving blacksmith legally permitted to use the Higonokami trademark.

Specifications

• Material: White Steel (Shirogami) hand-forged Warikomi

• Blade Thickness: approx. 3.2 mm

• Blade Length: 90 mm

• Handle/Saya Length: 100 mm

• Handle/Saya (Flip Cover): Brass

This Higonokami knife is a piece of living history—still handmade by the last official bearer of the Higonokami name.