This is a katana made by Minamoto-no Masakage in Echigo province during the late Edo period (1863). It has a blade length of 73.8cm and is certified as a Tokubetsu Hozon Token by the NBTHK. The blade features a gunome and choji hamon and comes with a shirasaya and gold foil habaki.
NihontoWatchmei · Bunkyu (1861-1864) · nagasa 73.8cm · sori 1.7cm
Echigo · around 1861-1864
Tōken Taikan top 97%
4 pieces on the market now
For two and a half centuries of peace the sword was the warrior’s legal badge rather than his weapon. Each great city developed its own manner, Edo’s tested strength against Ōsaka’s polished brilliance, until demand thinned in the era’s last decades.
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 siteNo cooling-off period or returns; refund only if the purchased sword is proven fake, capped at purchase price (excludes commission sales, accessories, auction items).
This is a katana made by Minamoto-no Masakage in Echigo province during the late Edo period (1863). It has a blade length of 73.8cm and is certified as a Tokubetsu Hozon Token by the NBTHK. The blade features a gunome and choji hamon and comes with a shirasaya and gold foil habaki.
NihontoWatchmei · Bunkyu (1861-1864) · nagasa 73.8cm · sori 1.7cm
Echigo · around 1861-1864
Tōken Taikan top 97%
4 pieces on the market now
For two and a half centuries of peace the sword was the warrior’s legal badge rather than his weapon. Each great city developed its own manner, Edo’s tested strength against Ōsaka’s polished brilliance, until demand thinned in the era’s last decades.
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 siteNo cooling-off period or returns; refund only if the purchased sword is proven fake, capped at purchase price (excludes commission sales, accessories, auction items).
