This is a katana attributed to Uda Kunifusa from the late Nanbokucho to early Muromachi period. It features a powerful sugata with a flowing katana-bi on both sides. The blade has a refined jigane with ji-nie and utsuri, and a suguha-based hamon with ko-gunome and ko-midare, showcasing the characteristics of the Uda school.
Certificate reading — 無銘（宇多国房）
NihontoWatchmumei · Uda · Eitoku (1381-1384) ND · nagasa 69.9cm · sori 1.85cm
Wakimono · Etchu · around 1381-1405
Fujishiro Chu-jo saku · Tōken Taikan top 18%
1 piece on the market now
Where Kunifusa 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.
Years he was demonstrably active, proven by signed-and-dated blades
Wakimono · Etchu
Phase: Ko-Uda古宇多· 1310–1394
6 pieces on the market now
Ko-Uda (古宇多) names the founding stratum of the Uda school, the work that does not descend later than the Nanbokucho period and so stands before the long Muromachi continuation that the same studio names would carry. The setsumei place the origin in Yamato: around the Bunpo era at the close of Kamakura, the monk-smith Ko-nyudo Kunimitsu left Uda District in Yamato and settled at Utsu in Etchu, and from him the lineage took root. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Ko-Uda古宇多 | 1310-1360 | 50 |
| Kunifusa國房 | 1368-1375 | 17 |
| Kunimitsu國光 | 1362-1368 | 9 |
| Tomonori友則 | 1390-1394 | 4 |
| Kunitsugu國次 | 1356-1361 | 1 |
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 accepted within 3 days of delivery for defective items or significant discrepancies; customer bears return shipping and bank fees.
This is a katana attributed to Uda Kunifusa from the late Nanbokucho to early Muromachi period. It features a powerful sugata with a flowing katana-bi on both sides. The blade has a refined jigane with ji-nie and utsuri, and a suguha-based hamon with ko-gunome and ko-midare, showcasing the characteristics of the Uda school.
Certificate reading — 無銘（宇多国房）
NihontoWatchmumei · Uda · Eitoku (1381-1384) ND · nagasa 69.9cm · sori 1.85cm
Wakimono · Etchu · around 1381-1405
Fujishiro Chu-jo saku · Tōken Taikan top 18%
1 piece on the market now
Where Kunifusa 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.
Years he was demonstrably active, proven by signed-and-dated blades
Wakimono · Etchu
Phase: Ko-Uda古宇多· 1310–1394
6 pieces on the market now
Ko-Uda (古宇多) names the founding stratum of the Uda school, the work that does not descend later than the Nanbokucho period and so stands before the long Muromachi continuation that the same studio names would carry. The setsumei place the origin in Yamato: around the Bunpo era at the close of Kamakura, the monk-smith Ko-nyudo Kunimitsu left Uda District in Yamato and settled at Utsu in Etchu, and from him the lineage took root. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Ko-Uda古宇多 | 1310-1360 | 50 |
| Kunifusa國房 | 1368-1375 | 17 |
| Kunimitsu國光 | 1362-1368 | 9 |
| Tomonori友則 | 1390-1394 | 4 |
| Kunitsugu國次 | 1356-1361 | 1 |
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 accepted within 3 days of delivery for defective items or significant discrepancies; customer bears return shipping and bank fees.
