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.
NihontoWatchNihontoWatchFujiwara Takada refers to a group of swordsmiths within the Takada school of Bungo Province who primarily used the "Fujiwara" surname during the Edo period; while inheriting the tradition of emphasizing practicality since the Muromachi period, they left behind many works in the early modern era featuring balanced shapes, refined forging, and bright ji and ha. Although this work is mumei, it was attributed to "Fujiwara Takada" in a Tokubetsu Kicho Token certificate dated March 23, Showa 50, and its powerful taihai, well-wrought jitetsu, and flamboyant hamon of gunome mixed with choji clearly display the healthy, practical style of early Edo period Fujiwara Takada alongside rich highlights as an art sword. It is a wakizashi in shinogi-zukuri with an iori-mune and a nagasa of 50.7 cm; while maintaining a sufficient motohaba of 30.45 mm, the difference between the width at the moto and saki opens appropriately, concluding in a handsome chu-kissaki in a姿 that masterfully harmonizes the reliability of a practical sword with the balance of an art sword. The nakago retains its ubu form, though the machi is thought to have been slightly moved (machi-okuri), and with only one mekugi-ana, this is a blade that has been carefully passed down to the present day without significantly losing the original framework of the sword body formed in the early Edo period. The jitetsu is well-wrought ko-itame mixed with mokume, where chikei seems to weave through the densely packed hada covered in thick ji-nie; depending on the angle of the light, the fine grains of nie and the undulations of the forged hada emerge, showing an expression rich in depth. The hamon is based on a gunome-midare with a bright and clear nioiguchi mixed with choji-ba, where thick ashi enter powerfully from each yakigashira toward the hasaki, and within the ha, sunagashi and kinsuji connect to develop an active scenery full of variety inside the handsome shape, while the boshi is a straightforward finish that is sugu and returns in maru. The accompanying niju-habaki utilizes a contrast of color tones with a suakane-ji base for the shitagai and a shakudo-kise over suakane-ji for the uwagai; the uwagai features a stylish design with three round holes, and rather than stopping at its role as a practical item to protect the blade, the combination of the warm tones of the suakane and the deep black of the shakudo adds a dignified accent to the calm ji and ha of this sword. The kuro-ro-nuri-saya wakizashi koshirae is based on a deep black saya with suppressed luster, featuring a peacock motif on the fuchi-kashira where the rich feathers and form are expressed in irogane to add brilliance to the handsome exterior. The tsuba combines a spider web with a heron standing by reeds, using kin-iroe for the reeds and silver expressions for the heron to condense a quiet waterside scene, while the shakudo menuki feature a design that appears to represent birds in waves with water splashes shining in gin-zogan; it is a composition where different themes of peacocks, herons, and birds in waves are skillfully harmonized into a single set of koshirae, allowing one to enjoy various kinko techniques in every part of the small canvases. Since the shirasaya and tsugiki are also present, the blade can be stored safely in the shirasaya while the koshirae is displayed independently, allowing for full appreciation of both the activity of the gunome, choji, kinsuji, and thick ashi developing within the ha, and the kuro-ro-nuri-saya wakizashi koshirae with its elegant kanagu. Although tsuba-nari and rattling of the tsuka are observed in the koshirae, both are considered to be within a range that can be repaired with relatively inexpensive adjustments; in addition to the quality of the blade attributed to Fujiwara Takada, the comprehensive contents including the niju-habaki, shirasaya, tsugiki, and the elaborately designed koshirae make this an attractive sword recommended for collectors who wish to appreciate both the blade and the mounting as one.
Offered by Toushin
Its only papers are older green Kichō papers, which the NBTHK largely disavows today. Ask the dealer whether it has passed current shinsa. — Hoshi
30 on the market
As written by the shop
Machine translation from the shop's Japanese · may contain errors ·
Bizen-den · Bungo
30 pieces on the market now
In Bungo Province on Kyushu, the early Kamakura masters Sadahide and Yukihira appeared and then, for a span, distinguished makers ceased; the setsumei repeatedly mark this gap before the line that became the Takada school took hold. The school was founded in the Nanbokuchō period by Tomoyuki, who arose at Takada Manor (Takada-shō) and signed in the long form "Hōshū Takada-shō Fujiwara Tomoyuki," with dated work surviving from the Shōhei (1349) and Jōji eras into the 1360s. Beside him the registers place Tokiyuki, said to be his son or disciple, and Masayuki, thought to belong to a separate line, whose Kentoku 2 (1371) tantō carries Southern Court dating and a Kurikara relief following the example of Yukihira. From these Nanbokuchō roots the lineage ran continuously through Muromachi and on into the shintō era. The naming itself tracks the periods: Nanbokuchō smiths prefixed Fujiwara; from Muromachi they signed Taira and shared the characters 盛・守・鎮・統, so the group is broadly called Taira-Takada (Heike or Hira-Takada); late in the line they returned to Fujiwara, and that stream, carried into the Edo period, is distinguished as Fujiwara-Takada. Named Muromachi hands in the setsumei include Taira Naomori (a ken dated Ōnin 3, 1469), Taira Nagamori, Takada Tatemori (Meiō 10, 1501), Taira Shizunori, and Fujiwara Shinkiyo. Across the blades a consistent vocabulary recurs. The jihada is itame mixed with mokume, frequently tending toward standing grain (hada-dachi) and, in the early work, drifting toward masame or nagare; ji-nie and chikei appear, the steel often carries a darkish kanagu tone with patches of jifu, and a whitish shirake-utsuri (sometimes a faint midare-utsuri) stands out conspicuously.
The temper runs from suguha and chū-suguha mixed with ko-gunome up to gunome-midare, with nie adhering and ashi and yō entering; kinsuji and sunagashi run through, and in fuller-tempered work tobiyaki, muneyaki and hitatsura develop (as in Nagamori's Eishō wakizashi). Founder-period Tomoyuki work is recognized by angular gunome spaced at wide intervals, an overall subdued (shizumi) impression, strong shirake with jifu, and a manner the setsumei liken to Sue-Sa and the Samonji group; the school as a whole shows Bizen-leaning utsuri, Yamato-tinged masame and nagare, and at its summit, in Shizunori, work judged to take Rai Kuniyuki as its model. Branch and period read off the signature prefix and the shape: deep curvature with an arched, upturned profile through mid-Muromachi, then broader blades with shallower sori and an extended chū-kissaki in the later phase. " Among the smiths the setsumei single out Nagamori as the most accomplished of the Heike-Takada, a suguha specialist with notably good jigane and skilled horimono, his name carried across several generations and dated freely in the Eishō and Daiei eras; one of his blades was bestowed by Shimazu Tsugutoyo of Kagoshima on the retainer Honda Chikaaki, and Tatemori is rated near him. The line reached into early shintō through Kunifusa, a disciple of Shizumasa of Takada who moved to Uwajima in Iyo, served Date Hidemune, and worked in a Horikawa manner. Provenance runs through the descriptions: Masayuki's tantō was transmitted in the Shōnai Sakai family with a Hon'ami Kōchū origami of Kyōhō 6 and recorded in the Kōzan oshigata and Umetada Meikan, and Nagamori's tachi survives with a maki-e and raden scabbard. The cutting-oriented robustness of the work, weighty in hand with thick kasane and a sturdy build, reflects the taste of an age of warfare, and these blades served as practical arms across Kyushu. The setsumei are candid that Takada has drawn a generally low evaluation in the field, and several of the registered pieces are framed expressly as answering that judgment, restoring the standing of a long lineage on the strength of its best surviving work. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Tomoyuki友行 | 1350-1367 | 15 |
| Kunifusa國房 | 1615-1624 | 5 |
| Akiyuki鑑行 | 1532-1555 | 0 |
| Kagenari景也 | 1661-1673 | 0 |
| Chikayuki及行 | 1661-1673 | 0 |
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.
This work carries older NBTHK “Kichō”-era papers, which the NBTHK no longer issues and largely disavows today. To confirm the attribution, submission to an official Japanese examination body (such as the NBTHK or NTHK) for modern certification could be considered.
As a rule we do not accept returns, except when we have sent a different item from the one ordered or when there is a significant discrepancy between the description and the item. If you wish to return an item, please contact us within 3 days of its arrival and then send it back.
¥385,000