Muromachi turned sword making into an industry: the uchigatana rose with massed infantry warfare, Osafune and Seki produced bundle swords beside custom orders, and the Ming trade carried Japanese blades abroad by the tens of thousands.
NihontoWatchNihontoWatchKoto Mumei Shikomi tsue Koshirae 室町時代後期の美濃伝・末関とみられる無銘古刀です。白気映りの立つ板目肌に互の目乱れを焼いています。刀身は古研ぎですが地刃は確認でき、珍しい仕込み杖拵も概ね良好な状態です。 This is an unsigned koto, believed to be a late Muromachi-period work of the Mino tradition, probably Sue-Seki. It features an itame hada with shirake-utsuri and a gunome-midare hamon. Although the blade is in an old polish, the jihada and hamon remain visible. The rare shikomizue koshirae is also in generally good condition. 刀身価格 :100,000 円 仕込杖拵価格 :50,000 円 合計価格 :150,000 円(ばら売りはしません) Blade price:100,000 ¥ Shikomizue mounting price: ¥50,000 Total price: ¥150,000 (not sold separately) 「体配 style」 鎬造り庵棟、身幅細く重尋常、反り僅か中鋒。茎は磨り上げられ筋違い鑢がかかり、茎尻は一文字に切られる。 Shinogi-zukuri with an iori-mune. The blade is relatively narrow with standard thickness, slight curvature, and a medium kissaki. The nakago is suriage, with sujikai yasurime (diagonal file marks), and ends in an ichimonji-jiri. 「地鉄 jigane」 地鉄は板目肌が流れ、白気映りが立つ。 The jigane is a flowing itame hada with prominent shirake-utsuri. 「刃紋 hamon」 刃紋は五の目乱れ尖り刃を交え、刃縁沸が付き砂流しかかる、刃中は金筋が働く。釯子は乱れ込み小丸に返る。 The hamon is gunome-midare mixed with togari-ba. Nie adheres along the habuchi, with sunagashi, while kinsuji works actively within the ha. The bōshi is midare-komi and turns back in a ko-maru. 「特徴 detailed」 無銘の古刀です。地鉄・刃文の特徴から、室町時代後期の美濃伝・末関の作と思われます。 地鉄は板目肌を鍛え、白気映りが立ち、刃文は互の目乱れを焼いています。刀身は古研ぎのため、汚れや薄錆、小傷が見られますが、地刃は十分に確認できます。小傷は研ぎによって除去できる程度と思われます。 拵は仕込み杖拵で、柄頭が曲がった珍しい形状をしています。焦茶色の漆塗りに唐草模様が描かれ、その上に3か所、桜の革が貼られていますが、うち1か所は剥がれています。割れなどの大きな損傷はなく、全体的なコンディションは概ね良好です。 This is an unsigned koto. Judging from the characteristics of the jigane and hamon, it is believed to be a work of the Mino tradition, probably Sue-Seki, dating from the late Muromachi period. The jigane is forged in itame hada with shirake-utsuri, and the hamon is gunome-midare. The blade is in an old polish and shows some staining, light rust, and minor scratches, but the jihada and hamon remain clearly visible. The minor scratches should be removable with professional polishing. The koshirae is in the style of a shikomizue (cane sword), featuring an unusually curved tsukagashira. It is finished in dark brown lacquer with a karakusa arabesque design and decorated with three pieces of cherry-blossom-patterned leather, one of which is missing. There are no cracks or other major damage, and the overall condition is generally good. 「拵 Koshirae」 ハバキ(habaki) :素銅地一重。 鞘(saya) :仕込み杖拵 「刀剣の状態 condition of blade」 研:古研ぎのため、汚れや薄錆が有りますが、地刃は見えます。 傷:少し小傷が有りますが、研ぎで取れるでしょう。 ——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— ★仕込み杖は 銃砲刀剣類所持等取締法にて、変装銃砲刀剣類として日本国内では所持が禁止されています。そのため販売は刀身と拵は 別々の販売形態とさせていただきます。また保管する際も、刀身と仕込み杖拵は別々保管して下さい(海外は関係無いです)。 Under Japan’s Firearm and Sword Possession Control Law, shikomizue are classified as disguised firearms/swords and are therefore prohibited to possess within Japan. For this reason, the blade and the mounting will be sold separately. In addition, when storing them, please keep the blade and the shikomizue mounting separate as well. (This does not apply outside Japan.) 拵えは竹を用いた仕込み杖で、一見すると竹の杖に見えます。おそらく廃刀令後の明治時代に作られたものと思われます。コンディションは良好です。 The koshirae is a bamboo shikomizue, which at first glance appears to be nothing more than a bamboo walking stick. It is believed to have been made in the Meiji period, likely after the Haitōrei sword prohibition edict. Condition is also good. 刀身価格 : 100,000円 合計価格 : 150,000 円(ばら売りはしません) Blade price: ¥ 100,000 yen Shikomizue mounting price: ¥ 50,000 yen Total price: ¥ 150,000 yen (not sold separately)
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Wakimono · Satsuma
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The Naminohira school traces its origins to the late Heian period, when a swordsmith named Masakuni migrated from Yamato Province and established himself at Naminohira in Taniyama District, Satsuma Province. His son Yukiyasu succeeded him, and the lineage continued unbroken into the late Edo shinshintō era. The collective term Ko-Naminohira designates smiths and works dating no later than the Nanbokuchō period, distinguishing the school's formative generations from later practitioners. This geographic isolation in southern Kyushu allowed the development of a distinctive regional aesthetic that balanced mainland influences with local forging traditions. The school's technical identity reveals a pronounced Yamato character in both construction and tempering, yet the forging exhibits a characteristic density and slight tenacity (nebari) that distinguishes Naminohira work from its Yamato antecedents. The jigane typically shows strongly flowing itame-hada, often with a whitish cast and well-adhering ji-nie, while thick chikei appear throughout the ground. In the hamon, a fine hoso-suguha or narrow suguha-based temper predominates, with the nioiguchi displaying a distinctive urumi tendency—a moist, soft quality that creates a subdued, somewhat shizumi-inclined appearance.
A diagnostic feature appears at the hamachi, where slight yaki-otoshi marks the transition from untempered to tempered steel. The school's Nanbokuchō-period works often present extended ō-kissaki and deep koshizori, embodying the martial aesthetic of that turbulent age. The Naminohira tradition experienced a renaissance during the Edo period, producing masters such as Ichi Heian Yasushiro, who in Kyōhō 6 (1721) was summoned to forge for Shōgun Tokugawa Yoshimune. His exceptional skill earned him the privilege of engraving the ichiyō aoi crest on his nakago and the court appointment of Shume no Suke. His work and that of his contemporary Masakiyo represent the apex of Satsuma shintō, demonstrating how provincial schools could achieve recognition at the highest levels of Tokugawa society. The scarcity of early signed works, particularly from the Kamakura and Nanbokuchō periods, renders extant examples invaluable for understanding the school's development and its role in transmitting Yamato forging methods to Japan's southern frontier. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Yukiyasu行安 | 1308-1311 | 9 |
| Yasutsugu安次 | 1375-1381 | 0 |
| Yasuyoshi安吉 | 1469-1487 | 0 |
| Fuji藤 | 1394-1428 | 0 |
| Yasutsugu安次 | 1224-1225 | 0 |
The Muromachi period (1392 to 1573)
Muromachi turned sword making into an industry: the uchigatana rose with massed infantry warfare, Osafune and Seki produced bundle swords beside custom orders, and the Ming trade carried Japanese blades abroad by the tens of thousands.
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