説明

Antique Japanese Sword Katana Signed by Hiroshige with Hozon Certificate 【Description】 This blade was forged by Bushu Shitahara Jyu Hiroshige( 武州下原住広重 ). Bushu Shitahara is the name of the area in the Tokyo area today where he created this blade. According to NBTHK that authenticated this blade, it was forged approximately in the early Edo period. We made a phone call to them to confirm it. Hiroshige belonged to the Bushu Shitahara school, located in today’s Tokyo(Hachioji city).It is said that Yamamoto Norishige founded the school, and it thrived from the end of the Muromachi period to the late Edo period.(Late 16th century to Late 19th cetnury) Shitahara Kaji is the group of swordsmiths under the Hojo clan’s auspicious, powerful feudal line during the late Muromachi period. After the Toyotomi clan destroyed the Hojo clan in the Azuchi Momoyama period, Shitahara started to serve the Tokugawa clan as Okakae Kaji, swordsmiths exclusively working for a specific feudal family. Most of the Shitahara swordsmith’s real sir name was Yamamoto. They especially flourished during the late Muromachi period-early Edo period. They kept forging for the Tokugawa clan until the end of the Edo period. Among the Bushu Shitahara group, Hiroshige was one of the most famous ones. The maker’s name, Hiroshige, lasted for several generations. This blade is appraised as a Hozon certificate issued by NBTHK. This authentication paper was only given to Japanese swords, worth preserving by Nihon Bijutsu Touken Hozon Kyokai(the Society for the Preservation of the Japan Art Sword). 【 Blade】 Cutting Edge Length(Nagasa) : 64.6 cm(25.43 inches) Curvature(Sori) : 0.9 cm( 0.35 inches) For more detailed measurement of the blade/sword mounting Hamon : The crystalline structure which forms along the cutting edge of a blade as a result of the hardening process Jimon(Jihada) : visible steel surface pattern created by folding and hammering during forging process Nakago : Nakago is the tang of the Japanese sword. Japanese swordsmiths left the black rust on the tang because it prevents red rust while the tang is in its handle. And the discoloration of the tang was created over time, and it is a great indicator for a Japanese sword specialist to estimate when the sword was forged. Please keep in mind that the letter of the signature was half-cut due to the size adjustment in the past. Koshirae: Koshirae is the mounting of the Japanese sword. There are several parts that consist of Koshirae such as Saya(Scabbard), Tsuka( Handle), Tsuba(Handguard). Fuchi-Kashira : A pair of matching sword fittings that cover the upper and bottom parts of its sword hilt. Flowers are designed on this Fuchi Kashira, and golden metal is applied to them. Its surface is decorated with the Nanako-Ji technique. The ground was hit by the Nanako-Ji Tagane (魚子地鏨, chisel used for this technique). It makes delicate fish egg-shaped protrusions. It shows us the maker’s expert skill. If you focus on the Fuchi part, you will find the Kikusui Mon (菊水紋). It depicts chrysanthemum flowers floating in running water. Since a long time ago, the Kikusui Mon has been known as a design that represents longevity based on a Chinese legend. It says we could extend our lifespan by drinking water flowing from the chrysanthemum colony. Therefore, people treated this design as a kind of good luck motif. It is said this pattern started to be used in the Kamakura period (1185-1333). Some families used it for their family crests. Kusunoki Masashige (楠木正成, 1294?-1336) is one of them. He contributed to the defeat of the Kamakura Shogunate and was given the chrysanthemum flower crest by Emperor Go-Daigo in recognition of his remarkable achievements. However, Masashige chose to use the Kikusui Mon, the water flowing in the lower half of the chrysanthemum flower. According to a theory, it was because he thought it was too presumptuous to have the same crest as the emperor. We would say this story tells us the relationship between