After the Ōnin War broke the Ashikaga order, a century of Sengoku warfare armed nearly every province in Japan. The era rewards a discriminating eye: routine work exists in quantity, and beside it stand custom blades of the first rank.
NihontoWatchNihontoWatchToshin only 260g It has arrived, it has arrived—a famous wakizashi with hitatsura-ba made by the 3rd generation Kanefusa during the Eisho era of the Muromachi period (circa 1515, 511 years ago). This was the time when Hojo Soun was active in the Miura Peninsula. This is a wakizashi by Kanefusa from the same period as Magoroku Kanemoto of Mino and Izumi no Kami Fujiwara Kanesada (Nosada). Kanefusa was a swordsmith of the Zenjo school and served as the soryo-ke (head family) of the Seki smiths, acting as the representative of all Seki kaji. This wakizashi exhibits an excellent hira-zukuri shape with a wide moto-mihaba and saki-mihaba, and a graceful sori. The jigane is a well-forged itame-hada. The hamon is based on nioi-deki with nie, featuring the rounded-top gunome-ba known as "Kanefusa-midare." It includes mune-yaki on the back and yaki-iri within the ji, resulting in a hitatsura-ba with a spirited and magnificent tempered edge. Because hitatsura-ba requires extensive tempering, the ji-ba becomes hard; if the quality is poor, the risk of damage during combat increases, endangering the samurai. Therefore, when crafting hitatsura-ba, one must carefully select the raw materials for the jigane and perform correct, superior tanren. It is a feat that cannot be accomplished by an ordinary smith. This wakizashi clearly demonstrates the exceptional skill of the swordsmith Kanefusa. On this occasion, an elderly doctor and long-time collector (sukisha) entrusted this to us, saying, "I have grown old, so please pass this on at a low price to someone who will cherish it." Therefore, we are offering it at a special bargain price. Please do enjoy this precious hitatsura-ba masterpiece by Kanefusa.
NihontoWatchKanefusa兼房
Offered by Nipponto
Mino · around 1504-1521
Tōken Taikan top 49%
2 pieces on the market now
The Muromachi period (1392 to 1573)
After the Ōnin War broke the Ashikaga order, a century of Sengoku warfare armed nearly every province in Japan. The era rewards a discriminating eye: routine work exists in quantity, and beside it stand custom blades of the first rank.
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 siteFor returns due to customer circumstances, the cost is the customer's responsibility. For returns due to our mis-shipment or a defective item, we bear the cost.
¥450,000