Muromachi turned sword making into an industry: the uchigatana rose with massed infantry warfare, Osafune and Seki produced bundle swords beside custom orders, and the Ming trade carried Japanese blades abroad by the tens of thousands.
NihontoWatchNihontoWatchThis antique Japanese katana, signed by Kanetsuji (兼辻), dates to the late Muromachi period (late 15th-early 16th century) from Mino province. Kanetsuji was a Sue-Seki smith known for practical and innovative designs. The blade features exquisite Hataboko (旗鉾) engravings, symbolizing Bishamonten, and comes with a Tachi Koshirae with lightning bolt motifs on the Fuchi-Kashira and Menuki, and a Karakusa (Arabesque) Tsuba.
Certificate reading — 銘 為濃州兼辻之作（関）鳥井則光摺之
NihontoWatchOffered by Samurai Museum
Mino · around 1555-1558
Tōken Taikan top 76%
1 piece on the market now
The Muromachi period (1392 to 1573)
Muromachi turned sword making into an industry: the uchigatana rose with massed infantry warfare, Osafune and Seki produced bundle swords beside custom orders, and the Ming trade carried Japanese blades abroad by the tens of thousands.
Certifies a genuine blade worth preserving: a signature confirmed correct, or, if unsigned, an era, province, and school that the NBTHK can reliably identify.
The NBTHK (Nihon Bijutsu Tōken Hozon Kyōkai, the Society for the Preservation of Japanese Art Swords) is a public-interest incorporated foundation founded in 1948 and supervised by Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs (Bunkachō); it is based at the Japanese Sword Museum in Tokyo. Its expert panels physically examine each submitted work (shinsa) and issue a certificate (kanteishō) ranking it by artistic and historical merit. NBTHK papers are the most widely recognized standard of authentication for Japanese swords and fittings.
NBTHK official siteReturns/exchanges limited to defects caused by shipping (except willful misconduct or gross negligence by the company); customers must contact within 72 hours of receiving the product.
¥1,250,000