Edo was the sword’s age of connoisseurship: the Hon’ami appraisers, the shogunal register of famous blades of 1719, and a thriving literature turned the sword into an object of study even as it ceased to be drawn in war.
NihontoWatchNihontoWatchKatana by Harima Daijō Fujiwara Shigetaka — Remounted in Kyu-Guntō Naval Officer Koshirae Harima Daijō Fujiwara Shigetaka was an Echizen-based swordsmith active around the Kanbun era in the early Edo period. Originally from Iida in Shinshū, he studied under Seki Kanenori and later followed his teacher to Echizen during the Tenshō era. The first generation Shigetaka was renowned for his refined craftsmanship. The Shigetaka line maintained its distinguished reputation through successive generations, continuing until the eleventh during the Kaei era. This blade is forged by the first generation of the Shigetaka lineage and is appraised as a work from the Kanbun era of the Shintō period. The judgement is supported by its distinctive form and shallow curvature (sori) - features typical of Kanbun-era craftsmanship, when many smiths produced blades with a compact sugata and restrained elegance. This sword was later shortened (suriage) and remounted in a Kai-Guntō naval officer’s koshirae. During the wartime period, it was not uncommon for officers (especially those from samurai families) to have their ancestral blades refitted for active service. Such remounting allowed them to carry the swords of their forebears into battle as symbols of heritage and honor. The koshirae of this example corresponds to an early Imperial Japanese Navy Kyu-Gunto mounting, used between 1883 until around 1937, before standardized naval fittings were introduced. The hilt (tsuka) features finely engraved metalwork, crafted specifically for field officers, and is far more intricate than the standard fittings issued to junior ranks. The saya, made of chrome-plated metal, reflects the naval preference for durability and resistance to salt corrosion.
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As written by the shop
The Edo period (1615 to 1868)
Edo was the sword’s age of connoisseurship: the Hon’ami appraisers, the shogunal register of famous blades of 1719, and a thriving literature turned the sword into an object of study even as it ceased to be drawn in war.
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.
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