This is a Juyo-designated mitokoromono (matching set of kozuka, kogai, and menuki) by Ishiguro Koretsune from the late Edo period. The set features a paulownia and phoenix design in high relief and colored inlay on a shakudo nanako ground, characteristic of the Ishiguro school's 'flowers and birds' motif. It is accompanied by a custom kiri-bako, silk case, and Juyo paper, indicating its exceptional quality and condition.
NihontoWatchBETAmei · Ishiguro · Edo
Ishiguro Koretsune
Edo
Signed
Jūyō #28 (NBTHK)
Machibori · Musashi
3 pieces on the market now
Ishiguro Koretsune was the eldest son of the first-generation Masatsune, the founding master of the Ishiguro school within the broader Yokoya lineage. Known by the common name Shukichi, he employed the art names Togakushi and Shuhosai. Together with the second-generation Masatsune, Koretsune served as a substitute maker (daisaku) for his father, assuming a central role in the workshop's prolific output during the late Edo period. He is further credited with having provided technical guidance to the first-generation Koreyoshi, thereby transmitting the school's methods to the next generation. It is recorded that Koretsune died in the prime of life, lending a particular rarity to his surviving oeuvre.
Koretsune's carving methods are characterized by the NBTHK as "dignified and sumptuous, yet steadfast and reliable." Working principally on shakudo nanako-ji grounds, he excelled in bold takabori with polychrome iroe employing gold, silver, shakudo, shibuichi, and hi-irodo (scarlet copper). His command of sculptural depth is especially notable: by subtly lowering the hiraniku from the seppa-dai toward the rim, he achieved a heightened sense of perspective that transforms the tsuba surface into what the examiners describe as "a magnificent and excellent screen-painting transformed into metalwork." His bird-and-flower subjects — from phoenix and paulownia to raptorial birds upon aged plum trees — display vigorous, spreading forms and a courageous bearing that constitute "the very essence of the Ishiguro school."
Koretsune's significance rests both in his role as the vital link between the first-generation Masatsune and the school's later flourishing, and in the exceptional quality of his individual production. The NBTHK has consistently praised works in which "Koretsune's full strengths are amply displayed[[c:1]]," noting in particular his lavish yet controlled use of gold and his ability to render subjects with an immediacy "such that the bird seems about to burst forth from the surface." Because examples by Koretsune are acknowledged to be scarce, each surviving work is valued not only as a demonstration of supreme craftsmanship but also as "important material for the study of the Ishiguro school[[c:2]]."
Where Koretsune stands among comparable artisans: across all of nihontō, and within tradition, era, and period. The tiers (Foremost · Leading · Major · Notable) weigh official designations from the NBTHK and Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs, together with historical honors of lasting repute such as the Sansaku and Meibutsu-chō.
Select a lens to see how it's measured.
Machibori · Edo
22 pieces on the market now
The Ishiguro school was founded by Ishiguro Masatsune, born in Horeki 10 (1760), who trained under Kato Naotsune and Yanagawa Naomasa within the broader Yokoya lineage before establishing an independent atelier that would become one of the most celebrated machibori ("town carving") workshops of the late Edo period. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Masayoshi政美 | — | 30 |
| Masatsune政常 | — | 17 |
| Masaaki政明 | — | 19 |
| Koretsune是常 | — | 4 |
| Koreyoshi是美 | — | 4 |
A blade of top-grade workmanship and condition, formally judged to rank with a nationally recognized Important Art Object (Jūyō Bijutsuhin). Awarded only at the NBTHK’s competitive annual examination.
Of Japan’s roughly 2.5 million registered swords, only 12,358 (about 1 in 202) have ever attained Jūyō.
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 site3 day inspection period on all sales. Items can be returned for any reason for a full refund, less return shipping cost. Returned items must be in the same condition as when purchased.
This is a Juyo-designated mitokoromono (matching set of kozuka, kogai, and menuki) by Ishiguro Koretsune from the late Edo period. The set features a paulownia and phoenix design in high relief and colored inlay on a shakudo nanako ground, characteristic of the Ishiguro school's 'flowers and birds' motif. It is accompanied by a custom kiri-bako, silk case, and Juyo paper, indicating its exceptional quality and condition.
NihontoWatchBETAmei · Ishiguro · Edo
Ishiguro Koretsune
Edo
Signed
Jūyō #28 (NBTHK)
Machibori · Musashi
3 pieces on the market now
Ishiguro Koretsune was the eldest son of the first-generation Masatsune, the founding master of the Ishiguro school within the broader Yokoya lineage. Known by the common name Shukichi, he employed the art names Togakushi and Shuhosai. Together with the second-generation Masatsune, Koretsune served as a substitute maker (daisaku) for his father, assuming a central role in the workshop's prolific output during the late Edo period. He is further credited with having provided technical guidance to the first-generation Koreyoshi, thereby transmitting the school's methods to the next generation. It is recorded that Koretsune died in the prime of life, lending a particular rarity to his surviving oeuvre.
Koretsune's carving methods are characterized by the NBTHK as "dignified and sumptuous, yet steadfast and reliable." Working principally on shakudo nanako-ji grounds, he excelled in bold takabori with polychrome iroe employing gold, silver, shakudo, shibuichi, and hi-irodo (scarlet copper). His command of sculptural depth is especially notable: by subtly lowering the hiraniku from the seppa-dai toward the rim, he achieved a heightened sense of perspective that transforms the tsuba surface into what the examiners describe as "a magnificent and excellent screen-painting transformed into metalwork." His bird-and-flower subjects — from phoenix and paulownia to raptorial birds upon aged plum trees — display vigorous, spreading forms and a courageous bearing that constitute "the very essence of the Ishiguro school."
Koretsune's significance rests both in his role as the vital link between the first-generation Masatsune and the school's later flourishing, and in the exceptional quality of his individual production. The NBTHK has consistently praised works in which "Koretsune's full strengths are amply displayed[[c:1]]," noting in particular his lavish yet controlled use of gold and his ability to render subjects with an immediacy "such that the bird seems about to burst forth from the surface." Because examples by Koretsune are acknowledged to be scarce, each surviving work is valued not only as a demonstration of supreme craftsmanship but also as "important material for the study of the Ishiguro school[[c:2]]."
Where Koretsune stands among comparable artisans: across all of nihontō, and within tradition, era, and period. The tiers (Foremost · Leading · Major · Notable) weigh official designations from the NBTHK and Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs, together with historical honors of lasting repute such as the Sansaku and Meibutsu-chō.
Select a lens to see how it's measured.
Machibori · Edo
22 pieces on the market now
The Ishiguro school was founded by Ishiguro Masatsune, born in Horeki 10 (1760), who trained under Kato Naotsune and Yanagawa Naomasa within the broader Yokoya lineage before establishing an independent atelier that would become one of the most celebrated machibori ("town carving") workshops of the late Edo period. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Masayoshi政美 | — | 30 |
| Masatsune政常 | — | 17 |
| Masaaki政明 | — | 19 |
| Koretsune是常 | — | 4 |
| Koreyoshi是美 | — | 4 |
A blade of top-grade workmanship and condition, formally judged to rank with a nationally recognized Important Art Object (Jūyō Bijutsuhin). Awarded only at the NBTHK’s competitive annual examination.
Of Japan’s roughly 2.5 million registered swords, only 12,358 (about 1 in 202) have ever attained Jūyō.
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 site3 day inspection period on all sales. Items can be returned for any reason for a full refund, less return shipping cost. Returned items must be in the same condition as when purchased.
