Perry’s arrival in 1853 unraveled the Tokugawa peace and created the first mass demand for working swords in two centuries. Kiyomaro, called the Masamune of Yotsuya, died on its eve; Munetsugu and Yukihide carried the boom to the end.
NihontoWatchNihontoWatchKenryushi Sadaharu was a swordsmith in Osaka during the Bakumatsu period and a pupil of Gassan Sadayoshi. His surname was Nagaguchi. This work has a grand sugata with a nagasa of 2 shaku 4 sun 6 bu, featuring a shallow sori, wide mihaba, and extended kissaki that aligns with the spirit of Bakumatsu warriors. The jigane is a fine ko-itame with chikei, and the hamon is suguha style with ko-gunome and ko-ashi, with kinsuji running along the habuchi. The tailoring of the nakago is meticulous. A superb kobako kesho-yasuri is applied over o-sujikai yasuri, and it is inscribed with a conscientious nagamei and a kokuin, while the ura bears a date of Keio 1 nengatsu engraved in a fluid sosho style. Registered in Saitama Prefecture in Showa 26. Passed the Tokubetsu Hozon Token shinsa in December 2025.
Certificate reading — 銘 於浪花永口剣龍子藤原貞晴鍛之(刻印) 慶応元乙丑歳十二月吉日
NihontoWatchOffered by Touken Matsumoto
4 on the market
As written by the shop
Machine translation from the shop's Japanese · may contain errors ·
Shinshinto · Settsu · around 1865-1868
Tōken Taikan top 95%
4 pieces on the market now
Shinshinto · Settsu
28 pieces on the market now
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Sadaharu貞晴 | 1865-1868 | 0 |
| Sadayoshi貞吉 | 1926-1989 | 0 |
| Yoshiaki吉明 | 1844-1848 | 0 |
| Naonobu直信 | 1854-1860 | 0 |
| Sadayoshi貞吉 | 1830-1863 | 0 |
Bakumatsu: the last war market
Perry’s arrival in 1853 unraveled the Tokugawa peace and created the first mass demand for working swords in two centuries. Kiyomaro, called the Masamune of Yotsuya, died on its eve; Munetsugu and Yukihide carried the boom to the end.
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 siteReturns within 7 days of the item's arrival. Returns are not possible if (1) the item has been altered, or (2) for overseas transactions.
¥1,000,000