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WABUKAN Arsenal · Staffs and sticks · Japan

Jutte

An iron truncheon with a side hook, carried by Edo-period police. It was used to catch a sword blade and arrest without killing.

Jutte
Jutte WABUKAN illustration

Also known as

十手 · jitte

Origin and history

The jutte was the badge and tool of Edo-period police officers (dōshin and okappiki), used to block, hook and control armed people, ideally without killing them. Several koryū schools, such as Ittō Shōden Muto-ryū, kept its techniques.

Martial arts that use it

Jujutsu

Construction

A round or octagonal iron bar of about 30–60 cm with a single side hook (kagi) above the handle, often with a cord and tassel whose colour could show rank.

Basic techniques

Training

Stick and staff training starts with grips, stances and basic strikes and blocks practised in the air or on a target, then two-person drills at controlled speed. Many schools use rattan or padded sticks for sparring, with a helmet and gloves.

Safety

Wear a helmet with a face grille and padded gloves for any contact work; hands and fingers are the most common injuries. Check sticks for cracks and splinters and retire damaged ones.

Legality (general information)

Sticks, staffs and other impact or flexible weapons are ordinary objects in some countries and restricted weapons in others (several European countries, for example, regulate nunchaku, batons or weighted chains). Carrying one in public without a good reason can be an offence even where owning it is legal. Transport it in a bag and use it in the training hall. This is general information, not legal advice: check local law.

Did you know?

The jutte has no edge; it was meant to arrest, not to kill, which matched the role of a peace officer.

More weapons

Bo Tonfa Hanbo Eku Gun (staff) Baston (rattan stick)

Sources

Original WABUKAN text, written from these cross-checked sources (facts, not sentences).

  1. Wikipedia — Jutte