NihontoWatchOrdering number:22355Tanto in Shirasaya with Box(NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Token)Signature: Ouji Denka Gotanjo Kinen Tame Miyoshi Tokumatsu Shi皇子殿下御誕生記念 為三好徳松氏Showa 6 Nen 3 Gatsu Kichijitsu Gassan Sadakatsu Kinsaku(Kao)昭和六年三月吉日 月山貞勝僅作(花押)Hand writing on the box(translation): Commemorating the birth of crown prince, for the demand of Miyoshi Tokumatsu.(We divide 4 sections for each sword as Saijyo saku, Jyojyo saku Jyo saku and regular saku)This sword belongs to Jyo Jyo saku ranking.The blade is polished.Habaki: Gold foiled single Habaki(rare for Gassan Sadakatsu)Blade length:25.9cm or 10.19inches.Mekugi:1Width at the hamachi:2.55cm or 1.00inches.Kasane:0.56cm or 0.22inches.The weight of the sword:150gramsEra: Showa 6(1931)Shape: The blade is slightly broad with Mitsumune shape.Jigane: Koitamehada is grained well to be elaborate. Ayasugihada.Hamon: Niedeki Suguha Hamon. Very dense to be beautiful Hamon.Special feature: Gassan Sadakatsu was born as the second sonof the First Gassan Sadakazu in 1869. Sadakatsu was a representative swordsmith of Taisho to early Showa period. He was an amazing swordsmith to make all of Soshu-den, Bizen-den and Yamato-den. Especially his distinctive Ayasugi-hada inherits the tradition that has been continued from the Kamakura period still lives on in gendai swordsmiths. Under his famous father Sadakazu the First, Sadakatsu forged only a few swords inscribed his swordsmith name until the death of Sadakazu in the late Taisho era. Sadakatsu put all his energies into making his own sword after 1920’s as a purveyor to the Imperial Household, special swords to dedicate the Ise-Jingu shrine, accepting orders by high dignitaries. He tempered sword with sincere and faithful attitude in conformity with Shintoism. Under that he trained many excellent swordsmiths. His two most excellent pupils, one was his real son the Second Gassan Sadakazu and the other was Takahashi Sadatsugu, were designated as preservers of Important Intangible Cultural Assets, popu
Certificate reading — 銘 月山貞勝謹作(花押) 昭和六年三月吉日 皇子殿下御生誕記念 為三好徳松氏
NihontoWatchOffered by Aoi Art
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Shinshinto · Osaka · around 1926-1989
Fujishiro Jo saku · Tōken Taikan top 60%
6 pieces on the market now
Where Sadakatsu 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.
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Shinshinto · Settsu
27 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 |
Shōwa to the present: destruction and revival
The twentieth century nearly killed the craft twice: wartime distortion, then the occupation ban. The NBTHK’s founding in 1948 and licensed forging from 1953 rebuilt the sword as an art, crowned by Living National Treasures and the mukansa rank.
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.
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