Southeast Asian & Japanese Arms & Art
Lot 201:
Late Edo Period Japanese Police Used SODEGARAMI Man Catcher Polearm, Designed for Pulling Samurai of the Horse by Entangling their Sleeve or Closing, Also to Restrain Individuals on Foot. Total Length is 57". ~~~ History: The Sodegarami is a type of man catcher. It is around 2 metres (7 ft) in length (some are shorter used on men on foot), with multiple barbed heads facing forwards and backwards. The pole is sturdy hardwood with sharp metal barbs or spines attached to metal strips on one end to keep the person being captured from grabbing the pole. The opposite end of the pole has a metal cap or ishizuki, like those found on naginata and other pole weapons. The sodegarami, tsukubo (push pole), and sasumata (spear fork) comprise the torimono sandogu (three implements of arresting) used by samurai police to capture suspected criminals uninjured. The sodegarami was used to entangle the sleeves and clothing of an individual who could then be more easily disarmed or dealt with. The sodegarami evolved from the yagaramogara, which was a long pole implement employed by naval forces. That instrument in turn was derived from the Chinese langxian, which was used to defend against Japanese pirates during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). Alternative names for the sodegarami include roga-bo, shishigashira, neji, and torigarami.
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