Hirosuke was a leading smith of the Shimada school in Suruga Province, a lineage that flourished from the mid-Muromachi period beginning with Yoshisuke and continuing into the shinto era. Sword reference works record Hirosuke as the son of the second-generation Yoshisuke, active around the Eisho era (1504-1521), with several later generations bearing the same name extending into the Tensho period and beyond. Within the Shimada group, three smiths -- Yoshisuke, Sukemune, and Hirosuke -- are regarded as the most accomplished masters, and among them Hirosuke displays the most robust style, conveying a sense of forceful spirit. The school's workmanship is thought to have been strongly influenced by Soshu, Ise, and Mino traditions.
Hirosuke is known for favoring bold, powerful constructions with a wide mihaba. His katana characteristically display sakizori with extended chu-kissaki or o-kissaki, producing a vigorous and imposing impression. The forging is typically itame-hada with slightly standing grain, sometimes flowing into nagare-hada and mixed with o-hada, with adhering ji-nie and a somewhat whitish tendency in the jigane. His hamon is most often a ko-notare base mixed with gunome and choji-like elements, with well-entered ashi, sunagashi, and ko-nie adhering in a deep nioi; kinsuji frequently enter, and tobiyaki and slight muneyaki appear in some works. The boshi tends toward midare-komi turning back in ko-maru, sometimes with hakikake. Among his finer pieces, the nioiguchi is bright, and the interior activities within the tempering are described as superb. The horimono found on certain examples -- including bonji, suken, and gomabashi -- are particularly uncommon for this smith.
Hirosuke's best works number among the finest productions of the entire Shimada lineage. One katana is described as a standout -- hakubi, "the best among its kind" -- with a suggestion that the maker privately emulated the style of such masters as Bizen Chogi. A rare collaborative work with Gensuke demonstrates the collegial relationships within the Shimada group. His dated works and those bearing the full signature "Shimada Hirosuke" are especially prized, including a katana inscribed as a Koshu-uchi work dated Eiroku 2 (1559) that was once the possession of Hara Mino Nyudo Toratane, one of the celebrated Twenty-Four Generals of the Takeda. An example held in the Imperial Collection further attests to the esteem in which his work was held.
