The twentieth century nearly killed the craft twice: wartime distortion, then the occupation ban. The NBTHK’s founding in 1948 and licensed forging from 1953 rebuilt the sword as an art, crowned by Living National Treasures and the mukansa rank.
Meibun: "Tango no Kami Fujiwara Kanemichi" "Kiku-mon Ichi" Classification: Katana Nagasa: 2 shaku 3 sun 1 bun Sori: 6 bun Motohaba: 36 mm Motokasane: 7 mm Sakihaba: 24 mm Sakikasane: 5 mm Toshin weight: 807 grams (All measurements are approximate) Shizuoka Prefecture Board of Education Showa 26 Daimyo Registration NBTHK Kanteisho included Featuring powerful Gakubori of a Dragon and Fudo-myoo. The dragon possesses an intensity as if it were about to ascend to the heavens; the sense of presence is extraordinary, and the magnificent carving, appearing as if alive, further adorns this sword with splendor. The mihaba is wide with an ubu-nakago. The jihada is beautiful, as if pursuing the ultimate aesthetic of steel. The habuchi features magnificent kinsuji and sunagashi, creating a beautiful and gorgeous appearance with a deep nioiguchi and fine konie, resulting in a truly masterful work. Tango no Kami Kanemichi (1st generation) is said to be the second son of the 2nd generation Kyo Yoshimichi; his name was Kichibei and he also signed as Naomichi. He received the title of Tango no Kami in Kanei 2. He also forged swords in Osaka. I believe a promotion in rank is certain. Please add this meito, adorned with the finest horimono, to your family treasures. 0 Yen (Tax included)
NihontoWatchIchimonji · Showa
Shinto · Settsu · around 1624-1644
Fujishiro Jo saku · Tōken Taikan top 60%
2 pieces on the market now
The Kanemichi name stands at the center of the Mishina lineage, one of the two dominant smithing groups in Kyoto during the Momoyama and early Edo periods. The founder of the line, Kanemichi of Mino, relocated to the capital together with his sons: Iga no Kami Kanemichi (the eldest), Rai Kanemichi, Tanba no Kami Yoshimichi, and Etchu no Kami Masatoshi. These brothers collectively established the school known as Sanpin-ha or Mishina-ha, and their descendants perpetuated the Kanemichi name across multiple generations and branches, including the Tango no Kami line active in Osaka during the Genroku era. Among the brothers, the shodai Iga no Kami is regarded as the one who most faithfully transmitted the original manner of their native Mino province, while subsequent generations increasingly absorbed the influence of Osaka shinto fashion.
The stylistic evolution of the Kanemichi line is well documented across its designated works. The shodai Iga no Kami's early output, before receiving his court title around the Tensho era, displays a "somewhat whitish style of forging, with pointed gunome tempering" and a tight nioiguchi with small nie -- "essentially that of late Mino (Sue-Seki)." In the later phase, the temper becomes "a large, turbulent midare based on small notare and mixed with large gunome, angular elements, and pointed tendencies," with strong nie, kinsuji and sunagashi, and the fully formed "Mishina boshi" -- a notare-tendency turn with a pointed return and vigorous hakikake. The setsumei describe how this renewed workmanship displays "a Shizu-like quality." By contrast, the nidai Tango no Kami Kanemichi departed from his father's hallmark sudare-ba to produce flamboyant toran-style large o-gunome-midare reflecting "the fashions current among Osaka shinto," as well as a distinct suguha-based mode with deep nioi "reminiscent of Shinkai." The nidai's toran works characteristically begin with suguha yakidashi, above which paired and triple gunome groups alternate in deliberate rhythmic sequence.
The designated corpus reveals both the breadth and the coherence of the Kanemichi tradition. The shodai's finest hira-zukuri wakizashi (Tokuju, 13th Session) is praised as the "hakubi of shodai Kanemichi" for its sudare-ba-like nie-kuzure and "boldly unrestrained approach," while the nidai's matching daisho (Juyo, 46th Session) demonstrates calculated ingenuity in its varied toran patterning, with the katana repeating a 3-3-2 gunome sequence and the wakizashi inverting it to 2-3-3 -- "allowing one to perceive the maker's ingenuity." A collaborative work (gassaku) by Rai Eizen and Rai Kanemichi, dated Tenna 3, is noteworthy for its inscription recording the use of nanban-tetsu, giving it "high documentary value." Across these branches, the family's ability to sustain technical excellence while adapting to successive aesthetic currents distinguishes the Kanemichi name as one of the most consequential in shinto swordsmithing.
Shinto · Yamashiro
76 pieces on the market now
The Mishina school (三品), one of the two dominant smithing groups of early Edo Kyoto beside the Horikawa, grew from the late-Mino workshop of Kanemichi of Seki, whose dated blades run through the Tenbun, Eiroku, and Tenshō eras. During the closing decades of the sixteenth century Kanemichi came up to the capital with his four sons and settled at Nishinotōin Ebisugawa, where the eldest, Iga no Kami Kinmichi, is recorded as having greatly raised the name of the line. The brothers, Kinmichi together with Izumi no Kami Rai Kinmichi, Tanba no Kami Yoshimichi, and Etchū no Kami Masatoshi, became known collectively as the Sanpin (三品) makers, and the published sources count Kinmichi head of the Kyō go-kaji, the five Kyoto smiths. From the second generation the house held a hereditary right to recommend smiths to the court for their titles and added that by-line to its signatures. The name continued under the same appellation to the end of the Tokugawa period, throwing off branches that included the Tango no Kami line working at Ōsaka into the Genroku years, though the published record consistently holds the founding generation the most outstanding of the line. Beneath every branch lies a shared vocabulary carried up from Mino-Seki. The jigane is the constant: an itame mixed with mokume that flows into nagare-hada and tends toward masame near the mune, the grain standing, with thick fine ji-nie and frequent chikei. Over it the Mino-derived gunome and togariba are refined toward a Kyoto manner, the nie strong and at times coarse, gathering unevenly, kinsuji and vigorous striped sunagashi running throughout. Two tells bind the house. The first is the Mishina bōshi, a notare or midare run-in pointed at the tip and swept with vigorous hakikake, the form Masatoshi shows at its clearest, described as if drawn from a picture. The second is sudareba, the bamboo-blind temper in which layered sunagashi and yubashiri stripe into parallel bands; Tanba no Kami Yoshimichi devised it, and the first-generation hand keeps it a free, semi-cursive disorder where his heirs would regularize it into a fixed lattice.
The lines diverge from that common ground. Kinmichi and his younger brother Masatoshi both excelled in a Shizu manner, the large midare of Mino grafted onto Sōshū nie, with Masatoshi the most versatile, ranging across Shizu, Mino sanbon-sugi, Yamato suguha, and Sōshū hitatsura. The later Ōsaka Tanba branch held to the sudareba alone, opening from a straight yakidashi, while the second Tango no Kami Kanemichi cast off the family chōji for a flamboyant tōran-style large gunome in alternating two-joined and three-joined groups, and a deep-nioi suguha read in the manner of Inoue Shinkai. To kantei Mishina is to read these two house marks first. The pointed, hakikake-swept bōshi and the striped sudareba, set over a standing itame that flows to masame, place a blade within the line before any signature is weighed; the sunagashi, far heavier than on a Bizen ji, is the very material from which the temper is built. Within the house the founding generation sets the standard. Fujishiro grades Kinmichi and Masatoshi Jō-jō saku, the Ōsaka Tanba shodai Jō-saku, and the second Tango no Kami Chū-jō saku, the sources judging the later Kyoto and Ōsaka generations markedly inferior to the founders as the manner thinned toward a single uniform pattern. Provenance on record runs through samurai and collector hands rather than great museums: a Kinmichi katana among the cherished swords of Tani Tateki, a Yoshimichi katana made for Naitō Kuroemon and another now in the Kyoto National Museum, Masatoshi blades passing through Oda Urakusai and the Imperial household, and a second Tango no Kami katana descending from the Aoyama wardens of Ōsaka castle. The brothers' blades are signed and knowable, dated examples rare, so the manner of the mei joins the workmanship in placing them; for the Ōsaka and Kyoto branches the cut of the character 守 separates one hand from the next. Most designated work is held rather than traded, so a signed founding-generation Mishina blade comes to light only from time to time, and with it the temper in which one of the most recognizable hamon of the Shintō era was first being worked out. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Kinmichi金道 | 1596-1615 | 23 |
| Yoshimichi吉道 | 1596-1615 | 36 |
| Masatoshi正俊 | 1596-1615 | 31 |
| Kanemichi兼道 | 1681-1704 | 5 |
| Yoshimichi吉道 | 1661-1673 | 6 |
Shōwa to the present: destruction and revival
The twentieth century nearly killed the craft twice: wartime distortion, then the occupation ban. The NBTHK’s founding in 1948 and licensed forging from 1953 rebuilt the sword as an art, crowned by Living National Treasures and the mukansa rank.
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 sitePlease notify us of your intention to return, by email or fax, no later than the day after the item's arrival. Return shipping, insurance, and refund transfer fees are the customer's responsibility.
Meibun: "Tango no Kami Fujiwara Kanemichi" "Kiku-mon Ichi" Classification: Katana Nagasa: 2 shaku 3 sun 1 bun Sori: 6 bun Motohaba: 36 mm Motokasane: 7 mm Sakihaba: 24 mm Sakikasane: 5 mm Toshin weight: 807 grams (All measurements are approximate) Shizuoka Prefecture Board of Education Showa 26 Daimyo Registration NBTHK Kanteisho included Featuring powerful Gakubori of a Dragon and Fudo-myoo. The dragon possesses an intensity as if it were about to ascend to the heavens; the sense of presence is extraordinary, and the magnificent carving, appearing as if alive, further adorns this sword with splendor. The mihaba is wide with an ubu-nakago. The jihada is beautiful, as if pursuing the ultimate aesthetic of steel. The habuchi features magnificent kinsuji and sunagashi, creating a beautiful and gorgeous appearance with a deep nioiguchi and fine konie, resulting in a truly masterful work. Tango no Kami Kanemichi (1st generation) is said to be the second son of the 2nd generation Kyo Yoshimichi; his name was Kichibei and he also signed as Naomichi. He received the title of Tango no Kami in Kanei 2. He also forged swords in Osaka. I believe a promotion in rank is certain. Please add this meito, adorned with the finest horimono, to your family treasures. 0 Yen (Tax included)
NihontoWatchIchimonji · Showa
Shinto · Settsu · around 1624-1644
Fujishiro Jo saku · Tōken Taikan top 60%
2 pieces on the market now
The Kanemichi name stands at the center of the Mishina lineage, one of the two dominant smithing groups in Kyoto during the Momoyama and early Edo periods. The founder of the line, Kanemichi of Mino, relocated to the capital together with his sons: Iga no Kami Kanemichi (the eldest), Rai Kanemichi, Tanba no Kami Yoshimichi, and Etchu no Kami Masatoshi. These brothers collectively established the school known as Sanpin-ha or Mishina-ha, and their descendants perpetuated the Kanemichi name across multiple generations and branches, including the Tango no Kami line active in Osaka during the Genroku era. Among the brothers, the shodai Iga no Kami is regarded as the one who most faithfully transmitted the original manner of their native Mino province, while subsequent generations increasingly absorbed the influence of Osaka shinto fashion.
The stylistic evolution of the Kanemichi line is well documented across its designated works. The shodai Iga no Kami's early output, before receiving his court title around the Tensho era, displays a "somewhat whitish style of forging, with pointed gunome tempering" and a tight nioiguchi with small nie -- "essentially that of late Mino (Sue-Seki)." In the later phase, the temper becomes "a large, turbulent midare based on small notare and mixed with large gunome, angular elements, and pointed tendencies," with strong nie, kinsuji and sunagashi, and the fully formed "Mishina boshi" -- a notare-tendency turn with a pointed return and vigorous hakikake. The setsumei describe how this renewed workmanship displays "a Shizu-like quality." By contrast, the nidai Tango no Kami Kanemichi departed from his father's hallmark sudare-ba to produce flamboyant toran-style large o-gunome-midare reflecting "the fashions current among Osaka shinto," as well as a distinct suguha-based mode with deep nioi "reminiscent of Shinkai." The nidai's toran works characteristically begin with suguha yakidashi, above which paired and triple gunome groups alternate in deliberate rhythmic sequence.
The designated corpus reveals both the breadth and the coherence of the Kanemichi tradition. The shodai's finest hira-zukuri wakizashi (Tokuju, 13th Session) is praised as the "hakubi of shodai Kanemichi" for its sudare-ba-like nie-kuzure and "boldly unrestrained approach," while the nidai's matching daisho (Juyo, 46th Session) demonstrates calculated ingenuity in its varied toran patterning, with the katana repeating a 3-3-2 gunome sequence and the wakizashi inverting it to 2-3-3 -- "allowing one to perceive the maker's ingenuity." A collaborative work (gassaku) by Rai Eizen and Rai Kanemichi, dated Tenna 3, is noteworthy for its inscription recording the use of nanban-tetsu, giving it "high documentary value." Across these branches, the family's ability to sustain technical excellence while adapting to successive aesthetic currents distinguishes the Kanemichi name as one of the most consequential in shinto swordsmithing.
Shinto · Yamashiro
76 pieces on the market now
The Mishina school (三品), one of the two dominant smithing groups of early Edo Kyoto beside the Horikawa, grew from the late-Mino workshop of Kanemichi of Seki, whose dated blades run through the Tenbun, Eiroku, and Tenshō eras. During the closing decades of the sixteenth century Kanemichi came up to the capital with his four sons and settled at Nishinotōin Ebisugawa, where the eldest, Iga no Kami Kinmichi, is recorded as having greatly raised the name of the line. The brothers, Kinmichi together with Izumi no Kami Rai Kinmichi, Tanba no Kami Yoshimichi, and Etchū no Kami Masatoshi, became known collectively as the Sanpin (三品) makers, and the published sources count Kinmichi head of the Kyō go-kaji, the five Kyoto smiths. From the second generation the house held a hereditary right to recommend smiths to the court for their titles and added that by-line to its signatures. The name continued under the same appellation to the end of the Tokugawa period, throwing off branches that included the Tango no Kami line working at Ōsaka into the Genroku years, though the published record consistently holds the founding generation the most outstanding of the line. Beneath every branch lies a shared vocabulary carried up from Mino-Seki. The jigane is the constant: an itame mixed with mokume that flows into nagare-hada and tends toward masame near the mune, the grain standing, with thick fine ji-nie and frequent chikei. Over it the Mino-derived gunome and togariba are refined toward a Kyoto manner, the nie strong and at times coarse, gathering unevenly, kinsuji and vigorous striped sunagashi running throughout. Two tells bind the house. The first is the Mishina bōshi, a notare or midare run-in pointed at the tip and swept with vigorous hakikake, the form Masatoshi shows at its clearest, described as if drawn from a picture. The second is sudareba, the bamboo-blind temper in which layered sunagashi and yubashiri stripe into parallel bands; Tanba no Kami Yoshimichi devised it, and the first-generation hand keeps it a free, semi-cursive disorder where his heirs would regularize it into a fixed lattice.
The lines diverge from that common ground. Kinmichi and his younger brother Masatoshi both excelled in a Shizu manner, the large midare of Mino grafted onto Sōshū nie, with Masatoshi the most versatile, ranging across Shizu, Mino sanbon-sugi, Yamato suguha, and Sōshū hitatsura. The later Ōsaka Tanba branch held to the sudareba alone, opening from a straight yakidashi, while the second Tango no Kami Kanemichi cast off the family chōji for a flamboyant tōran-style large gunome in alternating two-joined and three-joined groups, and a deep-nioi suguha read in the manner of Inoue Shinkai. To kantei Mishina is to read these two house marks first. The pointed, hakikake-swept bōshi and the striped sudareba, set over a standing itame that flows to masame, place a blade within the line before any signature is weighed; the sunagashi, far heavier than on a Bizen ji, is the very material from which the temper is built. Within the house the founding generation sets the standard. Fujishiro grades Kinmichi and Masatoshi Jō-jō saku, the Ōsaka Tanba shodai Jō-saku, and the second Tango no Kami Chū-jō saku, the sources judging the later Kyoto and Ōsaka generations markedly inferior to the founders as the manner thinned toward a single uniform pattern. Provenance on record runs through samurai and collector hands rather than great museums: a Kinmichi katana among the cherished swords of Tani Tateki, a Yoshimichi katana made for Naitō Kuroemon and another now in the Kyoto National Museum, Masatoshi blades passing through Oda Urakusai and the Imperial household, and a second Tango no Kami katana descending from the Aoyama wardens of Ōsaka castle. The brothers' blades are signed and knowable, dated examples rare, so the manner of the mei joins the workmanship in placing them; for the Ōsaka and Kyoto branches the cut of the character 守 separates one hand from the next. Most designated work is held rather than traded, so a signed founding-generation Mishina blade comes to light only from time to time, and with it the temper in which one of the most recognizable hamon of the Shintō era was first being worked out. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Kinmichi金道 | 1596-1615 | 23 |
| Yoshimichi吉道 | 1596-1615 | 36 |
| Masatoshi正俊 | 1596-1615 | 31 |
| Kanemichi兼道 | 1681-1704 | 5 |
| Yoshimichi吉道 | 1661-1673 | 6 |
Shōwa to the present: destruction and revival
The twentieth century nearly killed the craft twice: wartime distortion, then the occupation ban. The NBTHK’s founding in 1948 and licensed forging from 1953 rebuilt the sword as an art, crowned by Living National Treasures and the mukansa rank.
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 sitePlease notify us of your intention to return, by email or fax, no later than the day after the item's arrival. Return shipping, insurance, and refund transfer fees are the customer's responsibility.
