Originally, the swordsmith Shimada Yoshisuke has been affectionately called "Gisuke" since ancient times because of the pleasant phrasing of the name. This wakizashi is a work by the famous Yoshisuke of Enshu Suruga (Shizuoka Prefecture) from around the Taiei era of the Muromachi period (1520) (504 years ago). This wakizashi exhibits a graceful wakizashi-sugata with a somewhat deep sori and a high shinogi. The jigane is a forged itame-hada, and while some ohada appears in places as evidence of the forging, it is a charming characteristic of the passage of time. The hamon is in the Bizen-den style, featuring a highly spirited blade with a moto of gunome-midare and a saki of suguha-tone, modeled after the style popularized at the time by Bizen no Kuni Osafune Yosozaemon-no-jo Sukesada. Yoshisuke's ancestors were such skilled master smiths that they were said to be the Soshu Masamune of old. Since ancient times, Yoshisuke's wakizashi have been greatly favored by connoisseurs, and this wakizashi is also a magnificent meiwakizashi with varied and wonderful hataraki. Although some kitae-hada is visible, it is due to the passage of 500 years. As this piece has emerged into the world for the first time in its raw state (u-bu), we are offering it at a special low price. Please enjoy it.
Certificate reading — 銘 義助
NihontoWatchMuromachi · nagasa 48.8cm · sori 1.3cm
Soshu-den · Suruga
14 pieces on the market now
The Shimada school (島田) took its name from its base in Suruga Province, where it worked from the mid-Muromachi period along the Tōkaidō between the Mino hearths and the late Sōshū smiths of neighboring Sagami. The published sources place its founding generation in the Kōshō (or Kyōshō) era and trace its principal names without interruption down into the shintō period, with the same names continuing as late as the shinshintō era. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Yoshisuke義助 | 1492-1504 | 7 |
| Sukemune助宗 | 1444-1449 | 5 |
| Yoshisuke義助 | 1455-1526 | 4 |
| Yoshisuke義助 | 1573-1592 | 3 |
| Hirosuke廣助 | 1504-1521 | 9 |
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 siteFor returns due to customer circumstances, the cost is the customer's responsibility. For returns due to our mis-shipment or a defective item, we bear the cost.
Originally, the swordsmith Shimada Yoshisuke has been affectionately called "Gisuke" since ancient times because of the pleasant phrasing of the name. This wakizashi is a work by the famous Yoshisuke of Enshu Suruga (Shizuoka Prefecture) from around the Taiei era of the Muromachi period (1520) (504 years ago). This wakizashi exhibits a graceful wakizashi-sugata with a somewhat deep sori and a high shinogi. The jigane is a forged itame-hada, and while some ohada appears in places as evidence of the forging, it is a charming characteristic of the passage of time. The hamon is in the Bizen-den style, featuring a highly spirited blade with a moto of gunome-midare and a saki of suguha-tone, modeled after the style popularized at the time by Bizen no Kuni Osafune Yosozaemon-no-jo Sukesada. Yoshisuke's ancestors were such skilled master smiths that they were said to be the Soshu Masamune of old. Since ancient times, Yoshisuke's wakizashi have been greatly favored by connoisseurs, and this wakizashi is also a magnificent meiwakizashi with varied and wonderful hataraki. Although some kitae-hada is visible, it is due to the passage of 500 years. As this piece has emerged into the world for the first time in its raw state (u-bu), we are offering it at a special low price. Please enjoy it.
Certificate reading — 銘 義助
NihontoWatchMuromachi · nagasa 48.8cm · sori 1.3cm
Soshu-den · Suruga
14 pieces on the market now
The Shimada school (島田) took its name from its base in Suruga Province, where it worked from the mid-Muromachi period along the Tōkaidō between the Mino hearths and the late Sōshū smiths of neighboring Sagami. The published sources place its founding generation in the Kōshō (or Kyōshō) era and trace its principal names without interruption down into the shintō period, with the same names continuing as late as the shinshintō era. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Yoshisuke義助 | 1492-1504 | 7 |
| Sukemune助宗 | 1444-1449 | 5 |
| Yoshisuke義助 | 1455-1526 | 4 |
| Yoshisuke義助 | 1573-1592 | 3 |
| Hirosuke廣助 | 1504-1521 | 9 |
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 siteFor returns due to customer circumstances, the cost is the customer's responsibility. For returns due to our mis-shipment or a defective item, we bear the cost.
