This katana was made by Masanaga of Aizu during the early Edo period. The blade features an orikaeshi-mei (folded signature), a straight hamon with small gunome, and a well-forged itame hada. It comes with a silver single-layer habaki, shirasaya, shirasaya bag, registration certificate, and Hozon Token certificate from the NBTHK.
NihontoWatchBETAorikaeshi-mei · Shinto · nagasa 66.5cm · sori 0.4cm
Bizen-den · Iwashiro · around 1310-1333
Fujishiro Jo saku · Tōken Taikan top 49%
1 piece on the market now
Where Masanaga 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
Bizen-den · Bizen
225 pieces on the market now
No single workshop in the history of Japanese swordmaking grew larger or lasted longer than Osafune, the riverside village in Bizen Province whose name became, across three centuries, a byword for the province's mainline. Its de facto founder was Mitsutada (光忠), working at Osafune in the middle Kamakura period; tradition makes him the son of Chikatada, and the genealogies derive his line from the Ko-Bizen Masatsune group already settled in the village. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Mitsutada光忠 | 1238-1239 | 61 |
| Nagamitsu長光 | 1274-1304 | 254 |
| Kagemitsu景光 | 1303-1336 | 146 |
| Kanemitsu兼光 | 1323-1370 | 239 |
| Sanenaga眞長 | 1299-1309 | 64 |
Certifies a genuine blade worth preserving: a signature confirmed correct, or, if unsigned, an era, province, and school that the NBTHK can reliably identify.
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 siteIf you judge that the condition of the delivered item differs significantly from the photos or description on our site, a return is possible. However, the return shipping cost is the customer's responsibility. To use cooling-off, please apply in writing by postal mail within one week of the item's arrival. The return shipping cost is the customer's responsibility.
This katana was made by Masanaga of Aizu during the early Edo period. The blade features an orikaeshi-mei (folded signature), a straight hamon with small gunome, and a well-forged itame hada. It comes with a silver single-layer habaki, shirasaya, shirasaya bag, registration certificate, and Hozon Token certificate from the NBTHK.
NihontoWatchBETAorikaeshi-mei · Shinto · nagasa 66.5cm · sori 0.4cm
Bizen-den · Iwashiro · around 1310-1333
Fujishiro Jo saku · Tōken Taikan top 49%
1 piece on the market now
Where Masanaga 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
Bizen-den · Bizen
225 pieces on the market now
No single workshop in the history of Japanese swordmaking grew larger or lasted longer than Osafune, the riverside village in Bizen Province whose name became, across three centuries, a byword for the province's mainline. Its de facto founder was Mitsutada (光忠), working at Osafune in the middle Kamakura period; tradition makes him the son of Chikatada, and the genealogies derive his line from the Ko-Bizen Masatsune group already settled in the village. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Mitsutada光忠 | 1238-1239 | 61 |
| Nagamitsu長光 | 1274-1304 | 254 |
| Kagemitsu景光 | 1303-1336 | 146 |
| Kanemitsu兼光 | 1323-1370 | 239 |
| Sanenaga眞長 | 1299-1309 | 64 |
Certifies a genuine blade worth preserving: a signature confirmed correct, or, if unsigned, an era, province, and school that the NBTHK can reliably identify.
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 siteIf you judge that the condition of the delivered item differs significantly from the photos or description on our site, a return is possible. However, the return shipping cost is the customer's responsibility. To use cooling-off, please apply in writing by postal mail within one week of the item's arrival. The return shipping cost is the customer's responsibility.
