"Ginga" means "Galaxy" in Japanese and these new stainless steel beauties from Takayuki with 69 layers of Damascus steel live up to their name. Handles are made with high quality wenge wood for a complete package. These beautiful knives use a relatively new stainless steel to the market called ZA-18 which was developed by Aichi Steel Co. The composition of the steel uses the following; Carbon 1.20, Chromium 18.0, Molybdenum 1.5 and Cobalt 1.80 for added hardness, toughness and corrosion resistance. It's an excellent kitchen knife steel.