Echizen Rai

越前

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JūyōVol. 66, No. 18 · Katana

Overview

is the attribution given to unsigned blades judged to be the work of the line transplanted to . The published sources trace the name to Kuniyasu (来国安), said to have been born in Yamashiro and by one tradition a grandson of Kunisue (来国末), who later moved to and is regarded as the founder of the Chiyotsuru line; the sword-reference works place him around the era (1362 to 1368). The attribution therefore belongs to the period, when the Kyoto manner was carried into the northern provinces.

The one designated example on record is a , and , designated at the 66th session in 2020. Its shape, with a wide , little taper from base to tip, a somewhat shallow and an extended , places it in the period. The is well mixed with , standing overall, with and fine . The temper is a mixed with near the , with and , a slight hint of -, strong in places, along the , and and running well; a is carved on both sides.

The published sources read the blade in two layers. The with , the and , the hint of - and the and show the features of the school in both and . Against these stands the steel: 「地鉄が総じて肌立ち、かな色が黒みがかって淡く白ける処に北国風が感じられ、ここに越前来の極めが首肯される」 (the stands out overall and its colour is somewhat blackish with a faint whitish cast, which gives a northern-province feeling, and here the attribution to is persuasive). They add that the variety in the surface pattern is conspicuous and that 「特に刃中と刃縁の豊富な働きが見事であり、優れた出来映えである」 (the abundant activity within the edge and along the is especially splendid, an excellent piece of work).

Beyond this blade, some thirty further unsigned works attributed to are recorded in the research data, all placed in the period; nearly all are , with a few and one .

Historical importance

Where Echizen stands among comparable artisans: across all of nihontō, and within tradition, era, and period. The tiers (Foremost · Leading · Major · Notable) weigh official designations from the NBTHK and Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs, together with historical honors of lasting repute such as the Sansaku and Meibutsu-chō.

随一
Foremost
屈指
Leading
有数
Major
著名
Notable

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Designations

Kokuhō—
Jūyō Bunkazai—
Jūyō Bijutsuhin—
Gyobutsu—
Tokubetsu Jūyō—
Jūyō Tōken1

Elite Standing

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