Santoku Knife 165mm - 6 1/2' ZEN Blade The value Damascus knife was developed to meet the increasing market demand of 'JAPAN FANS' in world markets. The core material is VG10 'super stainless steel', which is covered by 18 layers of soft and hard high-carbon stainless steel on each side, producing 37-layer, rust-resistant Damascus-blade. The hammer marks on the upper part of the blade make it look very artistic. Further, the logo is stamped, not etched. Of course the blade has an extremely sharp cutting edge with the hardness rating of HRC61 on the Rockwell scale. 37 layers VG10 (Cobalt-Molybdenum-Vanadium) Stainless Steel. Handle The handle is made out of FDA-approved black Canvas-Micarta, which is an enormously solid and durable material made out of resin and linen. This material lasts decades. Different from other materials, it is non-shrink and odorless. It is polished perfectly and fastened tightly by two stainless steel rivets.