Perry’s arrival in 1853 unraveled the Tokugawa peace and created the first mass demand for working swords in two centuries. Kiyomaro, called the Masamune of Yotsuya, died on its eve; Munetsugu and Yukihide carried the boom to the end.
NihontoWatchNihontoWatchSummary This blade was signed by Munetsugu (宗次) during the SHIN SHIN TO era(1764-1876), according to NBTHK, which appraised it as a Hozon Touken. SHIN SHIN TO era refers to the Japanese blades forged from the early 1760s to the beginning of the Meiji period. There are more than a few swordsmiths who used Munetsugu as their maker’s names during that time and NBTHK could not specify which Munetsugu forged this Tanto. What is Tanto? Japanese swords under the blade length of 30cm (11.6 inches) are generally called TANTO, and sometimes TSUBA(鍔; Hand-Guard) is not attached to the TANTO. It was easy to carry and convenient for close combats. It was initially used as a supplemental weapon for Samurai on horseback, who used a pole weapon or long sword in the Kamaura-Muromachi period. Samurai aimed at an unprotected area of his enemy’s armor with Tanto while having to fight with close distance. TANTO was named accordingly, depending on how you carry it, such as HUTOKORO-GATANA (懐刀; Stomach-Sword) or KOSHI-GATANA(腰刀; Waist-Sword) or elsewise. TANTO was also a gift for a bride from her family in a traditional Japanese wedding, as it is believed that TANTO would be divine protection from evil power. This blade is appraised as a Hozon Touken (保存刀剣) issued by NBTHK (Nihon Bijutsu Touken Hozon Kyokai: 日本美術刀剣保存協会). Tsuka and Menuki The design of the menuki features the Tachi-Omotaka crest (立沢瀉紋図・Tachi-Omotaka monzu), a traditional Japanese family emblem that depicts the arrowhead plant (沢瀉・Omotaka) with its distinctive, upright, arrow-shaped leaves. This motif was historically favored by samurai families and symbolized victory (勝利・Shōri), honor (名誉・Meiyo), and resilience (不屈・Fukutsu). Kozuka The kozuka is adorned with a bamboo motif. Bamboo grows tall and straight toward the sky, symbolizing nobility and strength. Although it may break cleanly, its hollow interior has long been seen as a symbol of purity and humility. According to Chinese legend, the Fenghuang (鳳凰, a mythical phoenix-like bird) feeds on bamboo seeds, making bamboo a sacred plant in East Asian culture. Furthermore, because bamboo remains green even in the cold of winter, it is associated with eternity and longevity. For these reasons, the bamboo motif has been one of the most familiar and beloved designs in Japanese art and aesthetics since ancient times. Kougai This item is an antique Kougai (笄), a traditional hairdressing tool used by samurai to arrange or secure their hairstyle. The Kougai was typically stored in the Kougai-hitsu, a designated slot in the scabbard, while the Kozuka (小柄), a small utility knife, was stored on the opposite side. The design theme of this Kougai features bamboo, consistent with that of the accompanying Kozuka, reflecting a unified and harmonious aesthetic. Saya This saya is finished using the traditional Japanese lacquer technique known as kuro-ishime sendan-kizami nuri (黒石目千段刻塗). The ishime-nuri (stone-texture lacquer) creates a black, textured surface that resembles natural stone. This technique not only enhances the visual appeal but also provides a non-slip grip and excellent durability, making it both beautiful and practical. Authentificathentication Paper They authenticated the blade on August 23rd in the 6th year of Reiwa (2024). They appraised it as Hozon Touken, the blade worth preserving for Japanese society. Authentication Paper They authenticated the Koshirae on December 19th in the 5th year of Reiwa (2023). They appraised it as Tokubetsu Hozon Tosogu, the sword mounting especially worth preserving for Japanese society.
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Born in Kyōwa 3 (1803) at Shirakawa in Ōshū, Koyama Munetsugu (固山宗次) carried a smith's name read variously in the setsumei as Munobei or Sōbei, working under the art-names Issensai and Seiryōsai. He came up alongside elder brothers Munehira and Munetoshi, and although his teacher is traditionally given as Katō Tsunahide, the NBTHK readers repeatedly note that the hand of Katō Tsunatoshi shows through his work more plainly. He first served the Matsudaira house of Shirakawa as a retained smith; when that domain was transferred to Kuwana in Ise, he settled in Edo at Azabu Nagasaka and forged as a Kuwana domain smith. In Kōka 2 (1845) he received the court title Bizen no Suke, the signature Bizen no Suke Fujiwara Munetsugu recurring on the dated katana from that point. His production runs from the latter half of Bunsei into the early Meiji years, and the program it serves is the Bakumatsu fukko revival of Bizen-den: a deliberate return, from an Edo workshop, to the chōji tempering of the old Bizen masters. The shared idiom is consistent across the line. Construction tends to a wide mihaba, thick kasane, shallow sori and an extended chū-kissaki or ō-kissaki, giving the heavy-in-hand shinshintō bearing the readers call taihai. The ground is a tightly packed ko-itame, sometimes flowing toward nagare or masame, carrying extremely fine mijin-grade ji-nie and frequent chikei; faint utsuri rises on a number of blades.
The temper is the heart of the recognition: a nioi-dominant chōji-midare or gunome-chōji, with ko-chōji, togariba and angular heads mixed in, long ashi and yō entering, fine sunagashi and kinsuji, and a bright, clear nioiguchi. To read his hand, the setsumei flag particular chōji shapes (the kawazuko tadpole-head and the kobushi fist-shaped chōji clustered near Keiō-dated work), a midare-komi bōshi turning in ko-maru with hakikake, and the bold, thick-chiseled signatures with prominent chisel-pillows. Cutting-test inscriptions are common, several tied to the connoisseur Iga Norishige, who is recorded learning swordmaking from Munetsugu. His pupils carry the same vocabulary: Tairyūsai Sōkan (宗寛, also Munekane), son of Ōno Heizō and later a Koga/Furukawa domain smith, whose blades add a faint midare-utsuri and a smaller-pattern late temper; and the likely student Kongōsai Munehiro, who copied the same shrine original his master did. For kantei, the discriminating points are the orderly yet varied chōji arrayed shoulder-to-shoulder, the nie-laden Tenpō-era pieces whose habuchi has not yet settled, and a deliberate allusion to the second-generation Kunisuke when kobushi-like chōji appear. The named works root the line in documented copying: an utsushi of the National Treasure Koryū Kagemitsu, reconstructed to its original ubu state with kurikara and bonji carved by Sōkan; and a Tenpō 11 (1840) wakizashi copying the hōchō-shaped Masamune of Egara Tenmangū in Kamakura, carved by Tōryūsai Seiju and dedicated by Nomura Toshikatsu, a rare pairing of two Edo masters. Provenance inscriptions name patrons such as Miyake Takuma and the Furukawa domain on the Sōkan side. Across the NBTHK register, the work stands as a disciplined Edo restatement of the Bizen chōji tradition, prized for the brightness of its nioiguchi and for the documentary value of its dated, commissioned and trial-cut tangs. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Munetsugu宗次 | 1830-1870 | 52 |
| Sokan宗寛 | 1850-1868 | 5 |
Bakumatsu: the last war market
Perry’s arrival in 1853 unraveled the Tokugawa peace and created the first mass demand for working swords in two centuries. Kiyomaro, called the Masamune of Yotsuya, died on its eve; Munetsugu and Yukihide carried the boom to the end.
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.
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