日本刀 刀 銘 細川正守 NBTHK特別保存刀剣 刀装具付

附属品

NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Certificate for the blade＆Koshirae, Shirasaya Case, Koshirae Mounting, Traditional Sword Carrying Case, Sword Maintenance Kit, Full Exportation Support

Category

Katana (SHIN SHIN TO)

Age

The third year of the Kei0 era (1867)

Location

Musashi province (Today’s Tokyo prefecture)

登録証

Miyazaki 037046

販売店の記載のまま

Summary This blade was signed by Saku Yo Bakkashi Hosokawa Masamori (作陽幕下士細川正守) in the 3rd year of the Keio era (1867: The end of the Edo period). Saku Yo Bakkashi signifies that he was also a Samurai, and we assume he engraved these letters to show his dignity for being a Samurai. Hosokawa Masamori was active during the Koka-early Meiji era (1844-early 1870s). He was the son of Hosokawa Masayoshi, one of the most renowned swordsmiths during the late Edo period. Hosokawa Masanori＆Masayoshi His father, Hosokawa Masayoshi, had learned sword-forging techniques under the master, Suishinshi Masahide(水心子正秀), one of the most famous swordsmiths in Samurai history. Masamori learned sword-forging techniques in Edo city under master Taikei Naotane, an apprentice of Suishinshi Masahide. Masayoshi was an extremely skilled swordsmith, and he was excellent at forging blades with Choji Midare Hamon, which is the characteristic of the Bizen sword-forging style (BIZEN DEN). Masamori also mastered this excellent sword-forging technique from his father. Choji Midare Hamon is an Irregular wavy tempering line. Most of Masamori’s work reflects on Bizen Den (One of the Five Japanese sword-forging traditions). Hosokawa Masamori was famous for having a gorgeous groove (Hi: 樋) on his creations. Mamori and his father served the Matsudaira clan in the Sakushu Tsuyama domain(today’s Okayama prefecture). They served the clan as a Hanko(藩工), who exclusively forged swords for a specific clan. Tachi Koshirae This blade is stored in Tachi(太刀) Koshirae. Tachi was mainly used by an armored Samurai with one hand on horseback from the Heian period (794-1185 A.D.) until the early Muromachi period. TACHI was suspended loosely on the left waist with its edge facing the ground so that you could draw it faster to cut down soldiers on the ground. Because of its gorgeous looking, having a Tachi-style sword mounting became a social status among Samurai. This Koshirae was also appraised as a Tokubetsu Hozon Tosogu by NBTHK. It is appraised as a Tokubetsu Hozon Token(特別保存刀剣) issued by NBTHK(Nihon Bijutsu Touken Hozon Kyokai:日本美術刀剣保存協会). Fuchi-Kashira The Kabutogane (冑金/兜金) is a metal fitting that is attached to the end of a handle. And a Sarute/Sarude (猿手) is attached to this Kabutogane. The user of a sword passed the Udenukio (腕貫緒, a cord wrapped around the wrist to prevent a sword from falling out of the hand, mainly used when riding a horse) through this ring. In addition, the Fuchi Kanamono (縁金物) is also a metal fitting attached to the handle, but on the opposite side of Kabutogane. It seems all these black-colored metal parts of this handle have a stone-like surface. It is the same as other metal fittings such as Kuchi Kanamono (口金物, a metal fitting that is attached to the tip of the scabbard close to Tsuba), Seme Kanamono (責金物, a ring-shaped metal fitting placed in the middle of the scabbard to prevent the sheath from cracking), Ashi Kanamono (足金物, metal fittings attached to the positions where Sageo cord is wrapped), and Ishiduki Kanamono (石突金物, a metal fitting that is attached to the end of the scabbard). Tsuka and Menuki You could see the figure of the sword and a dragon wrapped around its blade part. This motif is called the Kurikara (倶利伽羅) pattern. It is the sword that Fudo Myo-O (不動明王, acalanātha) holds with his right hand. It is believed that this sword could cut off worldly desires: Sandoku (三毒). The Sandoku is the three fundamental earthly desires; Ton (貪, greed), Jin (瞋, anger, grudge), and Chi (癡, delusion, complaint). Fudo Myo-O is one of the objects of worship in Buddhism. According to a theory, it is the incarnation of Dainichi Nyorai (大日如来, Mahāvairocana, the principal image of esoteric Buddhism). Because of its sturdy appearance, it came to be worshiped as a god of war and is said to have been worshiped by many Samurai. Tsuba and Habaki This is a typical shape of the Tachi Goshirae Tsuba (太刀拵鐔). The difference between Tachi Tsuba (太刀鐔) and Katana Tsuba (刀鐔) is that the top and bottom positions of the Nakago hole (茎櫃, center hole) are reversed. The Tsuba of this Koshirae has Aoi (葵) Tsuba shape. The Ju-Ji (十字, cross) pattern is designed with golden metal. According to the certificate, the Tasuki (襷, geometric pattern with intersecting diagonal lines) pattern is also designed on this Tsuba. However, now it is challenging to see because of aging. If you focus on four corners and the tips of the golden cross mark, you will find a heart mark-shaped hole is engraved on each edge. It is called the Inome (猪の目) pattern. The Inome pattern has been used since ancient times. As its name implies, the boar’s eyes are the origin of this pattern. Some people believed the Inome design would work as an amulet to protect them from evil spirits or fire. Also, it is said it would bring good luck. On this Katana’s Koshirae, you could also find this Inome pattern on the scabbard. Saya If you focus on the middle and tip of this scabbard, you will find the Suhama (洲浜) patterns. The Suhama is an island-shaped sandbank that is formed on a coast. This design seems to be three circles arranged side by side and similar to the Japanese character’s shape: 品. We estimate that the Suhama patterns were designed on this scabbard as family crests. The Suhama pattern comes from Suhama-Dai (洲浜台), which was used in celebrations. It is said its auspiciousness is why Suhama patterns were incorporated into family crests. You would also capture a Japanese letter on the tip of this scabbard. It is written as 扇, which means a fan. We believe it is a type of Moji (文字, character) pattern because the character’s shape is deformed to fit in a circle. Many of the family crests depict animals and plants. However, some arranged characters, as seen on this family crest. *Please keep in mind that there are some areas where lacquer came off. If you like to see the detailed condition, please check other photos or contact us. Authentication Paper They authenticated the blade on July 21st in the 28th year of Heisei (2016). Its Koshirae (sword mounting) was also authenticated in the same year. They appraised them as Tokubetsu Hozon Touken＆ Tosogu, the blade＆sword mounting especially worth preserving for Japanese society.