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Horikawa Hirozane

廣實

Jūyō
Vol. 18, No. 219 · katana

Horikawa Hirozane

廣實

3 ranked works

ProvinceYamashiroEraKeicho (1596-1615)Period1596-1615SchoolHorikawaTraditionShintoTeacherKunihiroTypeSwordsmithCodeHIR376
3Jūyō Tōken

Overview

Hiromi was a disciple of Kunihiro, regarded since the period as having once used the name Kunihiro himself -- though modern research correctly identifies him as an independent student. Together with Osumi Daijo Masahiro, he is counted among Kunihiro's pupils whose work most closely approaches the master's own style. The two characters "Fujiwara" in Hiromi's inscriptions correspond entirely to those of Kunihiro, and the character hiro is also strikingly similar. It is likely that throughout his life he served in the capacity of (substitute making) and (substitute signing) for his master, and consequently few signed works survive.

Hiromi's forging displays the distinctive (rough-textured) quality characteristic of the group: an mixed with , with standing grain, plentiful , and . The steel carries a blackish tone. His typically takes the form of mixed with , with deep , well-adhering , and the appearance of and . In some works and are present, with appearing in places. The enters in and tends toward a pointed form with . In these points, "characteristics of the group appear throughout," and the cadence of the shows an unbroken affinity with the style of Kunihiro's so-called works.

Among the already small number of surviving signed pieces, his oeuvre encompasses , , and a notably rare -- the last described as possessing an archaic flavor in which "both and are outstanding." The consistently emphasizes that his workmanship most closely resembles Kunihiro's own, and it may be inferred that among Kunihiro's signed works "there must be a considerable number that are, in fact, Hiromi's and ."

Designations

Kokuhō—
Jūyō Bunkazai—
Jūyō Bijutsuhin—
Gyobutsu—
Tokubetsu Jūyō—
Jūyō Tōken3

Elite Standing

0.01 across 3 designated works

Top 35% among smiths

Provenance

1 documented provenance across certified works by Hirozane

Provenance Standing

0 works held in elite collections across 1 documented provenances

Top 46% among smiths

Raw score: 2.00 / 10

Blade Forms

Distribution across 3 ranked works

Signatures

Signature types across 3 ranked works

Currently Available

Lineage

TeacherKunihiro
Hirozane

Horikawa School

Other artisans of the Horikawa school

Kunihiro國廣
12 Jūyō Bunkazai12 Jūyō Bijutsuhin2 Gyobutsu10 Tokubetsu Jūyō117 Jūyō Tōken7 for sale
Kunimichi國路
2 Jūyō Bunkazai4 Jūyō Bijutsuhin1 Gyobutsu2 Tokubetsu Jūyō65 Jūyō Tōken15 for sale
Kunisada國貞
3 Jūyō Bijutsuhin1 Gyobutsu3 Tokubetsu Jūyō92 Jūyō Tōken16 for sale
Masahiro正弘
1 Jūyō Bunkazai3 Tokubetsu Jūyō10 Jūyō Tōken3 for sale
Kunitomo國儔
1 Jūyō Bijutsuhin3 Tokubetsu Jūyō22 Jūyō Tōken3 for sale
Kunisuke國助
1 Jūyō Bijutsuhin1 Gyobutsu55 Jūyō Tōken7 for sale
Kuniyasu國安
1 Jūyō Bunkazai1 Jūyō Bijutsuhin1 Tokubetsu Jūyō14 Jūyō Tōken3 for sale
Hiroyuki弘幸
17 Jūyō Tōken
Kuniyuki國幸
6 Jūyō Tōken2 for sale
Kunimasa國正
6 Jūyō Tōken3 for sale
Kunikiyo國清
1 Gyobutsu6 Jūyō Tōken2 for sale
Yoshitake吉武
4 Jūyō Tōken4 for sale