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.
This is a robust katana by Fujiwara Masayasu (Masatomo), a smith from Mino who moved to Owari Province and belonged to the Sakakura-Seki lineage. Dated to the Kanbun era (1661–1673), it features a wide mihaba, thick kasane, shallow curvature, and a beautifully refined ko-itame hada with nie-deki gunome-midare hamon. The blade comes with koshirae including an iron tsuba with chrysanthemum blossoms and iron fuchikashira with silver arabesque designs.
Auction status: live on sword-auction.com.
NihontoWatchmei · Sakakura-Seki · Enpo (1673-1681) · nagasa 75.4cm · sori 0.7cm
Owari · around 1673-1681
4 pieces on the market now
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.
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.
NBTHK official siteIf you wish to return an item, please notify us within 3 days of receipt. After this period we cannot accept cancellations. Please ship the return to us within 5 business days. Cancellation is conditional on the item being kept in the same condition as at the time of sale, so please handle it with care.
This is a robust katana by Fujiwara Masayasu (Masatomo), a smith from Mino who moved to Owari Province and belonged to the Sakakura-Seki lineage. Dated to the Kanbun era (1661–1673), it features a wide mihaba, thick kasane, shallow curvature, and a beautifully refined ko-itame hada with nie-deki gunome-midare hamon. The blade comes with koshirae including an iron tsuba with chrysanthemum blossoms and iron fuchikashira with silver arabesque designs.
Auction status: live on sword-auction.com.
NihontoWatchmei · Sakakura-Seki · Enpo (1673-1681) · nagasa 75.4cm · sori 0.7cm
Owari · around 1673-1681
4 pieces on the market now
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.
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.
NBTHK official siteIf you wish to return an item, please notify us within 3 days of receipt. After this period we cannot accept cancellations. Please ship the return to us within 5 business days. Cancellation is conditional on the item being kept in the same condition as at the time of sale, so please handle it with care.
