Naohito Myojin

Naohito Myojin first stepped into a forge at eighteen, training as a blacksmith for three years before turning his focus to sharpening — the discipline that would come to define his career. He spent a decade as an apprentice to Morihiro-san at the renowned Konosuke Sakai atelier, an unusually long and rigorous education even by Japanese standards. From that foundation Myojin-san eventually established his own workshop, Myojinriki Seisakusho, under the Tetsujin name in Susaki, Kōchi Prefecture, on the island of Shikoku in southern Japan. He is widely regarded as one of the country's most accomplished master sharpeners, a reputation built on patient repetition and an instinct for pushing his discipline further.

The Tetsujin signature is a finely judged bevel — narrow, tough, and resolved with extraordinary precision. Myojin-san balances respect for traditional Japanese sharpening methods with a quietly restless impulse to refine and innovate, and that tension is visible in the work. Geometry sits at the centre of the practice: profiles are confident and considered, edges feel composed under the hand, and the finishing carries the same discipline as the grind itself. Chamfered spines, cleanly rounded choils, and meticulously resolved kasumi or polished surfaces are recurring details, each one demonstrating the same commitment to material integrity that runs through the wider Myojinriki Seisakusho output.

What distinguishes Myojin-san beyond pure technique is a collaborative spirit rarely found at this level of the craft. He regularly shares his knowledge with other Japanese craftspeople, lifting the work of the smiths and finishers around him rather than guarding his methods. The result is a body of work that feels both deeply personal and quietly connected to a wider community of makers. We are proud to present Tetsujin within the Modern Cooking Collectors Selection, where Myojin-san's combination of edge stability, refined finishing, and maker-led generosity sits naturally alongside other world-class artisans.