Japanese Sword Museum

The Token Hakubutsukan, Tokyo's Japanese Sword Museum in Sumida ward, is the public collection of the Society for the Preservation of Japanese Art Swords (NBTHK). The society was founded in 1948 in response to the post-war Allied ban on private sword ownership, which condemned thousands of historic blades to destruction. The museum holds around 200 blades classified as National Treasures or Important Cultural Properties, from Heian-period tachi to Edo-period wakizashi, alongside fittings, tsuba guards and lacquered scabbards. In 2018 the collection moved from its original Yoyogi site to a new building beside the Sumida River next to Kuhonji temple and within sight of Tokyo Skytree. The upper study room lets visitors examine blades in natural daylight following the society's viewing etiquette.