Kurihara Nobuhide (栗原信秀) was born in Bunka 12 (1815) in Tsukigata Village, Nishikanbara District, Echigo Province. He initially trained as a mirror-maker in Kyoto before entering the school of Kiyomaro in the early Kaei years and becoming a swordsmith. The earliest extant dated work, from Kaei 3 or Kaei 5, suggests his period of direct study under his master was brief, yet he rapidly achieved independent mastery. By Kaei 6 (1853) he was producing the so-called "Uraga-uchi" at Uraga in Province. During the First Choshu Expedition of Genji 1 (1864), he went to Osaka under bakufu orders to supply weapons, forging there for approximately two and a half years. In Keio 1 (1865) he received the title no Kami. Later he returned to , and eventually to in Echigo, where in Meiji 10 (1877) he produced the sacred mirror for Yahiko Shrine. The consistently identifies him as the smith whose "technical ability was the most outstanding among Kiyomaro's group," noting that "there are works whose quality approaches that of his master Kiyomaro."
Nobuhide's blades display the quintessential - coloration of the Kiyomaro school. His is characteristically wide in with little taper from base to tip, shallow often tending toward , an whose shows a "withered tendency," and little -- constructional traits described as distinctive even within . The is mixed with , tending toward standing grain, with thickly adhering and abundant, bold . His is a mixing angular elements, round-headed , -like forms, and pointed () elements, with long entering vigorously. The is thick, and long and run conspicuously throughout, producing abundant internal activity. Rounded "beads" where the temper appears to have dropped away -- the so-called -- are "a habitual trait frequently observed in Kiyomaro and his line." The enters in with vigorous , showing a pointed tendency at the tip, and turns back long. His signature evolved over his career: "Kurihara Kenshi Nobuhide" through Bunkyu 2, the three-character "Taira Nobuhide" from Bunkyu 3 through Genji 2, and the full "Kurihara no Kami" title thereafter.
The praises Nobuhide's works as "overflowing with spirited force" and "frank in spirit," noting that his large-scale display "no imbalance or failure" despite their exceptional dimensions, from which "one can readily perceive the extraordinary technical level of Nobuhide." He is also credited with skill in , having learned carving technique from Kano Natsuo and developed a distinctive shallow, delicate relief style that built upon his earlier training as a mirror-maker. Several designated works carry rare inscriptions -- place-names, cutting-test records, and in one unique instance a -- that lend considerable documentary value. Across a prolific career spanning from the late period into early Meiji, Nobuhide stands as the foremost inheritor of Kiyomaro's legacy, producing blades whose bright and clear , varied temper patterns, and imposing construction place him among the most accomplished smiths of the era.