Edo was the sword’s age of connoisseurship: the Hon’ami appraisers, the shogunal register of famous blades of 1719, and a thriving literature turned the sword into an object of study even as it ceased to be drawn in war.
This antique Japanese Wakizashi was signed by Yoshikuni in 1868, during the early Meiji era. Yoshikuni, also known as Yonezawa Ju Yoshikuni, was an apprentice of the renowned swordsmith Kato Tsunatoshi. The blade comes with an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Certificate and features a koshirae with dog, Karajishi, and crane motifs.
NihontoWatchmei · Shin-shinto · nagasa 31.1cm · sori 0.2cm
Chikuzen · around 1596-1781
1 piece on the market now
Edo was the sword’s age of connoisseurship: the Hon’ami appraisers, the shogunal register of famous blades of 1719, and a thriving literature turned the sword into an object of study even as it ceased to be drawn in war.
A Hozon-certified blade judged to show notably superior workmanship and a better state of preservation. The bar is higher: re-tempered blades and most unsigned Muromachi/Edo works are excluded.
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.
This antique Japanese Wakizashi was signed by Yoshikuni in 1868, during the early Meiji era. Yoshikuni, also known as Yonezawa Ju Yoshikuni, was an apprentice of the renowned swordsmith Kato Tsunatoshi. The blade comes with an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Certificate and features a koshirae with dog, Karajishi, and crane motifs.
NihontoWatchmei · Shin-shinto · nagasa 31.1cm · sori 0.2cm
Chikuzen · around 1596-1781
1 piece on the market now
Edo was the sword’s age of connoisseurship: the Hon’ami appraisers, the shogunal register of famous blades of 1719, and a thriving literature turned the sword into an object of study even as it ceased to be drawn in war.
A Hozon-certified blade judged to show notably superior workmanship and a better state of preservation. The bar is higher: re-tempered blades and most unsigned Muromachi/Edo works are excluded.
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.
