NihontoWatchNihontoWatchAppraisal Certificate Contents: Zaidan Hojin Nihon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kyokai Juyo Tosogu [N.B.T.H.K] Juyo Tousougu The Kamiyoshi family is of the lineage of Hayashi Matahachi, and at the time of the grandfather Juhei, he entered the school by order of the domain and became a retained craftsman of the Hosokawa family. Along with his father Fukanobu, Rakuju is highly praised as a master craftsman, and is particularly said to be the second coming of Matashichi; his kin-zogan shows skill that approaches that of Matashichi, and the forging of the jigane is also excellent, succeeding in devising and expressing a unique variation called hikihada. Because the Kamiyoshi family uses special uchikomi-tagane above and below the nakago-ana, the tsuba made by the second generation Fukanobu and the third generation Rakuju can be identified even if they are mumei. This tsuba has butterfly motifs in sukashi on the left and right, which is a pattern seen throughout the generations of the Hayashi school also called kage-cho-sukashi; the sukisage-tagane on the edges of the sukashi is applied in a katakiri style and is powerful, and the kin-zogan in which he specialized is truly supple and magnificent. Furthermore, the characteristics of this craftsman are clearly demonstrated in the two tagane struck above the nakago-ana and the three struck below.
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Kamiyoshi Rakuju
Late Edo
Signed
Jūyō (NBTHK)
Machine translation from the shop's Japanese · may contain errors ·
Higo · Higo
Kamiyoshi Rakuju, also recorded as Kanki Rakuju, was the third-generation master of the Kamiyoshi lineage, a branch descending from the celebrated Hayashi Matahachi of Higo Province. The family's founder is said to have been Kamiya Jinzaemon, who entered the service of the Hosokawa house when Hosokawa Tadatoshi took possession of Higo. In the time of Juhei Tadamitsu, the family received the transmitted traditions of the Hayashi house by domain order and devoted itself to reviving the manner of the Kasuga school. The second generation, Juhei Kunihira Fukanobu, was born in Tenmei 6 (1786) and died in Kaei 4 (1851) at the age of sixty-six; his works are characterized by sincerity and outstanding dignity, never resorting to ostentation or novelty for its own sake. Rakuju was Fukanobu's son, born in Bunka 14 (1817) and dying in Meiji 17 (1884) at the age of sixty-eight. Both father and son enjoyed a high reputation as master craftsmen, and several collaborative works by the pair are recorded. That Juhei Tadamitsu is referred to as "the Kamiyoshi grandfather" and Fukanobu as "the Kamiyoshi father" testifies to the great importance of Rakuju's presence within this lineage.
Rakuju's gold inlay was said to demonstrate such technical brilliance that he was called "a second coming of Matahachi," an expression of the highest praise within the Higo tradition. His kinzogan approaches the level of the founding master, displaying a suppleness and vigor that is both delicate and forceful. His forging of the plate metal is also excellent: the well-refined iron exhibits the purplish patina characteristic of Higo tsuba, unctuous in appearance and lustrous, with subtly uneven clusters of texture that impart an elegant charm. He devised and successfully expressed a distinctive surface variation known as gama-hada ("toad-skin"), a special textural effect on the base metal that became one of his hallmarks. The Kamiyoshi family further employed a special uchikomi-tagane (punch-chisel) treatment above and below the nakago-ana — characteristically two marks above and three below — which serves as a decisive identifying feature, enabling attribution of works by both Fukanobu and Rakuju even when unsigned. His openwork encompasses kage-sukashi ("shadow openwork") renderings of butterflies, rain-dragons, auspicious clouds, and warabite (bracken-hand) motifs, all drawn from patterns handed down within the Hayashi school, executed with freely controlled forms that deliberately leave chisel traces to express both refined elegance and strength.
Beyond his accomplishments as a metalworker, the Higo Kinkoroku records that Rakuju's appraisal of metalwork was considered foremost in Higo, and that regarding the construction of sword mountings he attained an especially deep mastery of the inner principles. Beginning with the daimyo's personal mountings and extending throughout the domain household, most refined constructions were produced under his direction. His fully coordinated so-kanagu mountings — including celebrated copies of mountings favored by Miyamoto Musashi — are consonant with the aesthetic of the Hosokawa school of tea, combining pronounced martial character with restrained elegance. Several of his works are transmitted as former possessions of the Hosokawa family. The recurring appearance of the patron name "Ogi Masakuni" inscribed alongside Rakuju's signature on multiple designated works suggests the support of an important commissioning figure, though no other patron's name has been encountered in the same manner. Rakuju stands as a representative figure in late-Edo Higo metalwork, an artisan whose spirited resolve to rival Matahachi yielded works of elevated and refined character.
Where Rakuju stands among comparable artisans: across all of nihontō, and within tradition, era, and period. The tiers (Foremost · Leading · Major · Notable) weigh official designations from the NBTHK and Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs, together with historical honors of lasting repute such as the Sansaku and Meibutsu-chō.
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Higo · Higo
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The Kamiyoshi (神吉) school is the fifth of the celebrated Higo kinko lineages, established in Higo Province under the patronage of the Hosokawa house during the mid-to-late Edo period. According to the NBTHK setsumei, the progenitor of the Kamiyoshi line was Kamiya Jinzaemon[[c:1]], who is said to have become a craftsman when Hosokawa Tadatoshi entered Higo. The school's formal artistic lineage, however, traces directly to Hayashi Matashichi (又七), founder of the Hayashi school. In the time of Juhei Tadamitsu — also known as Masatada (正忠) — the family received by domain order the transmitted traditions (soden) of the Hayashi house and devoted itself to reviving the manner of the Kasuga school (春日派), that is, the Hayashi school. Born in Horeki 4 (1754), Masatada initially studied tsuba making under Zenshichi, a pupil of the second-generation Nishigaki Kanshiro, before entering the school of the third-generation Hayashi Tohachi by official command. He thereafter became an appointed craftsman (kakae-ko) to the Hosokawa family, and from his house emerged the school's two greatest masters: his son, the second-generation Fukanobu (深信, 1786--1851), and his grandson, the third-generation Rakuju (楽寿, 1817--1884). The collective style of the Kamiyoshi school is anchored in the conscious revival of Hayashi-school aesthetics, rendered through a vocabulary of refined iron plate work, controlled openwork, and gold inlay of exceptional sophistication. Their iron plates display the purplish patina (murasabi) characteristic of Higo tsuba — described repeatedly in the setsumei as possessing a viscous, lustrous quality (nettori to shite tsuya ga ari) with subtly uneven surface clusters (jiso) that impart an elegant charm (gashu). The school is distinguished by several signature technical achievements: gama-hada (蟇肌, "toad-skin"), a distinctive surface texture devised and perfected by Rakuju; kareki-zogan (枯木象嵌, "withered-tree" inlay), a gold inlay technique extending from the plate onto the rim; and kuzubishi (葛菱, kudzu-diamond) and uzumaki (渦巻, whirlpool) motifs rendered in gold nunome-zogan. Rakuju's gold inlay was praised across multiple setsumei as approaching the level of the founding master Matashichi himself — the recurring epithet "a second coming of Matashichi" (Matashichi no sairai) appears as a fixed formula in the NBTHK appraisals.
The Kamiyoshi family further employed a distinctive punched-chisel treatment (uchikomi-tagane) above and below the nakago-ana — characteristically two strikes above and three below for Rakuju — enabling attribution of unsigned works by both Fukanobu and Rakuju. Favored design motifs include warabite (蕨手, bracken-hand) openwork, shadow butterflies (kage-cho sukashi), rain-dragons (uryu), auspicious clouds (zuiun), and tomoe forms, all drawn from the Hayashi-school repertoire. Fukanobu's works are consistently characterized as sincere and dignified (seijitsu de hinkaku no sugureta sakufu), never resorting to eccentricity or novelty, while Rakuju brought a more forceful and inventive energy to these inherited forms. The Kamiyoshi school occupies a place of singular importance within the Higo kinko canon as the lineage that most faithfully preserved and reinvigorated the Hayashi tradition into the late Edo period. That Juhei Tadamitsu is referred to as "the Kamiyoshi grandfather" and Juhei Fukanobu as "the Kamiyoshi father" — both epithets defined in relation to Rakuju — testifies to the commanding stature of the third-generation master within this lineage. Fukanobu, though fewer signed works survive, produced pieces of such accomplishment that the NBTHK describes his finest tsuba as the hakubi (白眉, "crowning achievement") among his oeuvre — notably a yatsu-warabite design in imitation of Matashichi with gold sayagata inlay and the Hosokawa kuyo-mon (九曜紋) crest. The father-and-son collaborative works (gassaku) by Fukanobu and Rakuju further demonstrate the school's integrated mastery. Rakuju's late works, produced after decades of striving toward the example of Matashichi, are described as having attained an elevated and refined quality (kosho na sakuhin). Several pieces are recorded as former possessions of the Hosokawa family itself, and the recurrence of the patron name Ogi Masakuni (荻昌国) in commissioned inscriptions attests to the school's intimate relationship with prominent supporters. In the NBTHK's assessment, the finest Kamiyoshi works approach the level of the Hayashi school's founding master — a judgment that secures the school's legacy as the most distinguished heir to the Matashichi tradition. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Rakuju楽寿 | — | 13 |
| Fukanobu深信 | — | 3 |
| Masatada正忠 | — | 1 |
Exceptional craft of very high artistic value, judged to rank with a nationally recognized Important Art Object (Jūyō Bijutsuhin).
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.
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