Japanese Tanto Knife

The Tanto first made its appearance around the 8th century during the Heian Period. These first Tantos were almost always used as functional weapons and as a result did not have much artistic quality. Another result of the their functional use was that not many survived from this period. It was during this time and the years up until the 16th century, that the Tanto was worn with the Tachi as the Daisho of the Samurai. Women would also sometimes wear a smaller version of the Tanto in their Obi for self defense.