This is a kogai (hairpin/utility knife handle) featuring a yotsume-mon (four-eye crest) and arabesque design. It is unsigned (mumei) and attributed to the Kyo-Kinko school, known for their refined metalwork in Kyoto. The piece comes with an NBTHK Hozon Tosogu certificate, confirming its authenticity and quality.
Certificate reading — 無銘（京金工）
NihontoWatchmumei · Kyo-Kinko · Edo
Kyo-kinko School
Edo
Unsigned
Hozon (NBTHK)
Kinko · Yamashiro
Certifies a genuine fitting worth preserving: a correct signature, or, if unsigned, an identifiable era and school, with recognized artistic and craft value.
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 siteContact within 3 days of receipt; returns not accepted for modified items or when trade-in goods are involved.
This is a kogai (hairpin/utility knife handle) featuring a yotsume-mon (four-eye crest) and arabesque design. It is unsigned (mumei) and attributed to the Kyo-Kinko school, known for their refined metalwork in Kyoto. The piece comes with an NBTHK Hozon Tosogu certificate, confirming its authenticity and quality.
Certificate reading — 無銘（京金工）
NihontoWatchmumei · Kyo-Kinko · Edo
Kyo-kinko School
Edo
Unsigned
Hozon (NBTHK)
Kinko · Yamashiro
Certifies a genuine fitting worth preserving: a correct signature, or, if unsigned, an identifiable era and school, with recognized artistic and craft value.
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 siteContact within 3 days of receipt; returns not accepted for modified items or when trade-in goods are involved.
