Goto Eijo, the sixth-generation head of the Goto mainline (soke), was the eldest son and heir of the fifth master Tokujo. He was born in Tensho 5 (1577); his childhood name was Kameichi, his common name Genshiro, and his personal name (imina) Masafusa. In Bunroku 3 (1594), at the age of eighteen, he succeeded to the family headship, changed his name to Shirobei Masamitsu, and became the sixth master of the main house. As a metalworker he first signed Masafusa, then Masamitsu, and after taking the tonsure adopted the art name Eijo. From his youth he served Toyotomi Hideyoshi together with his father and forebears; however, after the destruction of the Toyotomi house, the Goto family for a time became ronin. In Genna 2 (1616), upon the recommendation of his uncle Chojo -- who enjoyed the favor of Tokugawa Ieyasu -- Eijo entered Tokugawa service. Shogun Hidetada appointed him to duties connected with fundo weights, oban gold coins, and carving work (), and he was again granted the family's former holding of 250 in Yamashiro Province together with an stipend of twenty persons' rations. In his later years he was elevated to the rank of Hogen. He died of illness in Genna 3 (1617) at the young age of forty-one, predeceasing his father Tokujo.
The consistently observes that Eijo's manner resembles that of Joshin, the third-generation master, and that many of his works tend toward somewhat larger-scale compositions; yet his workmanship is regarded as finer and more delicate than Joshin's. His on unites meticulous detail with a broad, open handling, while his gold crests () are boldly modeled with weighty, sculptural presence. In solid-gold , his yobori produces deeply rounded volumes so strongly modeled as to suggest sculpture in the round, with the in'-ne treatment conveying an unmistakable sense of antiquity. Triangular chisel work (sankaku-) defining horns and wrists is firm and assured, and careful attention extends to the smallest details of posture, garment folds, and the extremities of hands and feet. In figural subjects -- the dragon, parent-and-child lions, Ushiwakamaru and Benkei on the Gojo Bridge, Idaten, and sumo wrestlers -- the carving superbly captures a single instant of motion with precision, creating an overwhelming presence. The further note that characteristic features of Eijo may be observed in the warabite, mayu-gata, and elements of his compositions, and that his reverse constructions employing the three-step gold kezuri- joint are both sumptuous and stylish, vividly expressing the refined aesthetic of the period.
In discussions of Goto stylistic development, the works from the first through the sixth head are termed the kami roku-dai -- the "upper six generations" -- marking a distinct early phase, and Eijo stands as the culminating figure of that lineage. The repeatedly describes his works as projecting an elevated dignity and refinement characteristic of the Goto mainline iebori tradition, and observes that his pieces powerfully express the distinctive pleasures of -period Goto workmanship. Extant works bearing Eijo's personal signature are extremely few; the note that from his generation onward it became increasingly common for works to bear the maker's own signature, yet at present only some seventy to eighty signed examples are known across all formats. Several of his finest surviving pieces carry authentication by later Goto masters -- the twelfth-generation Mitsusato, the thirteenth-generation Mitsutaka, and the fourteenth-generation Mitsumori -- attesting to valuations ranging from 100 to 250 and to transmission through distinguished collections including the Shimazu, Konoike, and Tokugawa shogunal houses. This pattern of high appraisal by successive generations of the house underscores the institutional judgment that recurs throughout the designation records: Eijo is an outstanding master through whom the virtues of early Goto workmanship can be fully appreciated.
