A magnetic head a core having a front core and a back core. The front core has a wear-resistant non-magnetic base and a soft magnetic thin film disposed on the base. The thin film is divided into halves by a magnetic gap therein. The back core has a U-shaped block of soft magnetic material and a wear-resistant non-magnetic member connected between the legs of the soft magnetic block. The front and back cores are coupled with each other with the thin film sandwiched therebetween, the magnetic gap in the thin film facing the wear-resistant non-magnetic member, and the soft magnetic thin film and the soft magnetic block being in face-to-face contact with each other out of the neighborhood of the magnetic gap to form a closed magnetic path across the magnetic gap.