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.
This is a tanto by Gassan Sadatoshi, a Mukansa swordsmith and the third son of Living National Treasure 2nd Gen. Gassan Sadakazu. The blade features a hirazukuri shape with a suken engraving, ko-itame jigane, and notare and gunome-midare hamon. It comes with an elegant koshirae adorned with cherry blossom motifs in raden and maki-e, and a shirasaya.
NihontoWatchmei · Gassan · Showa (1926-1989) · nagasa 24.3cm · sori 0.1cm
Yamato · around 1926-1989
2 pieces on the market now
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.
We could not find an authenticity certificate on the seller’s listing. Japanese swords and fittings are normally papered by the NBTHK (or the NTHK). Without one, the attribution is the seller’s own assessment and has not been independently verified — treat it with caution and ask the dealer about certification before buying.
No cooling-off period or returns; refund only if the purchased sword is proven fake, capped at purchase price (excludes commission sales, accessories, auction items).
![Katana - Tokuho - by Gassan Sadakazu - Signed Naniwa ju Gassan Unryushi Sadakazu tsukuru [Seal] Keio gannen 11 gatsujitsu](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fitbhfhyptogxcjbjfzwx.supabase.co%2Fstorage%2Fv1%2Fobject%2Fpublic%2Flisting-images%2Fchoshuya%2FL805711%2F00.jpg&w=2560&q=90)
