NihontoWatch(Since ancient times, Uda mono refers to the work of swordsmiths who resided in Uda District, Yamato Province, such as Amakuni and Amaza, who were smiths from the birth of the Japanese sword; unfortunately, no works remain today, but this is a precious meitanto by Uda Kunitsugu who moved to Etchu.) (Uda Kunitsugu, nagasa 9 sun ari, Showa Mizunoe-Tora year Shiwasu, by request of Mr. Ikegami, Kunzan kaō) (Tanto is Koshu Tokubetsu Kicho, koshirae is Tokubetsu Kicho) It has appeared, it has appeared; the famous Dr. Honma Kunzan, who founded the current Nihon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kyokai, only provided sayagaki for exceptional meito even when requested, but a healthy meitanto by Uda Kunitsugu, said to be for the connoisseur and bearing an old sayagaki by Dr. Honma Kunzan from Showa 37, has emerged from an old family. The Uda smiths were swordsmiths who moved from Uda District, Yamato to Etchu, with Ko-Nyudo Kunimitsu as the founder around the Bunpo era (1317) (709 years ago) at the end of the Kamakura period; this tanto is a meitanto by Uda Kunitsugu, said to be the son of Uda Kunifusa, from around Tenbun 12 (1543) (483 years ago) in the Muromachi period, exactly when firearms were introduced to Tanegashima from Portugal. It is said since ancient times that the Uda smiths used the two characters for "Uda" to represent their birthplace of Uda, Yamato, the home of the Japanese sword's origin, as descendants of Ko-Nyudo Kunimitsu; the sugata of this tanto by Uda Kunitsugu has a shin-no-mune, a difference between the moto-mihaba and saki-mihaba, no sori, and displays a wonderfully fine tanto sugata truly like a meitanto, the jigane is ko-itame hada mixed with masame hada, forged into a bright and good jigane with chikei and jinie appearing in the ji, and the horimono is an elegantly carved bo-hi of high skill. The hamon is nioi-deki with ko-nie in a sugu-cho ha, with nijuba-fu and kuichigaiba-fu, and the ha contains elegant kinsuji; this tanto is one that you will not tire of viewing no matter how many hours you spend. The menuki of the koshirae feature a design of cranes in a pine tree, and the kozuka features a design of a crane with a pine branch in its beak; these auspicious fittings on the luxurious kuro-ro aikuchi koshirae add further splendor to this meitanto by Uda Kunitsugu. This tanto by Uda Kunitsugu has been cherished for generations by an old family, but as they have grown old, we have been entrusted to pass it on at a low price to someone who will treasure it; because Uda tanto are particularly favored by connoisseurs and are very popular among enthusiasts, we are offering it at a special, ultra-low price. Please enjoy this opportunity.
Offered by Nipponto
Kunitsugu is a name with Jūyō-designated work, and we couldn’t find current papers for this piece. Treat the name as unproven until papers say otherwise. Its older green papers are largely disavowed by the NBTHK today. — Hoshi Ask me first
As written by the shop
Machine translation from the shop's Japanese · may contain errors ·
Wakimono · Yamato
Where Kunitsugu stands among comparable artisans: across all of nihontō, and within tradition, era, and period. The tiers (Foremost · Leading · Major · Notable) weigh official designations from the NBTHK and Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs, together with historical honors of lasting repute such as the Sansaku and Meibutsu-chō.
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Wakimono · Kii
The Iruka group took its name from the locality of Iruka in Kii province, where, according to the Meikan references cited in its setsumei, a lineage of more than ten smiths worked from the Nanbokuchō period into the Muromachi. The setsumei place the line's beginning with Sanetsuna around the Jōwa to Bunna years, and record that many members shared the character Sane in their names, among them Sanetsuna, Sanetsugu, Sanehiro, and Saneyoshi. A signed tantō by Iruka Sanetsugu, dated to the early Muromachi, anchors this older branch. A second, later strand carries the name Kunitsugu: a smith of Kokawa in Kii active around Eishō who drew upon the Iruka line, distinguished by a kuni character whose enclosure interior is written as a cross-form, from which the appellations Sudō and Sasado arose. One setsumei records that the first Sasado generation studied under Norimitsu of the Iruka group around Ōei, with the name passing through successive holders. Across these blades the hand is quiet and disciplined. The setsumei tie the group's forging to the Yamato tradition, naming the Tegai and Hōshō lines, and the kitae bears this out: itame that flows and runs toward masame, with ji-nie, chikei, and on several blades a whitish utsuri or shirake-gokoro over the ji. The temper is consistently a low, narrow suguha, its nioiguchi tight and carried in ko-nie, admitting only slight ko-notare, ko-gunome, ko-ashi, or yō.
A recurring marker is the doubling of the hamon: yubashiri and hotsure gathering toward nijūba, and on the Sanetsugu tantō a layering suggestive of sanjūba, with muneyaki and a subdued, shizumi nioiguchi. The bōshi runs straight and turns in ko-maru. The Kunitsugu katana add sakizori and slender builds with funbari, while the tantō shows uchizori and thick kasane in the early Muromachi manner. For kantei, the running masame read against a low suguha in ko-nie points to the Iruka hand, the doubled temper toward nijūba and sanjūba sharpening the case, and the archaic, kokō cast of the Sanetsugu tantō marking the older branch. The cross-form kuni signature isolates the Sudō and Sasado Kunitsugu workmanship, where a densely knit ko-itame and tight narrow suguha are the rule, with only occasional gunome midareba or hitatsura. Signed pieces are uncommon, so each carries weight as source material for the group; the Sanetsugu tantō is named a representative Iruka work and is transmitted from the Kaga Ō-Maeda family. The setsumei present the Iruka smiths as a Yamato-rooted provincial line of Kii, recognizable less by display than by the consistency of their narrow temper. Learn more →
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Kunitsugu國次 | 1504-1521 | 2 |
| Kunitsugu国次 | — | 1 |
| Sanetsugu實次 | 1394-1428 | 1 |
The Kamakura period (1185 to 1333)
Nearly every later authority calls Kamakura the golden age of the sword: the first warrior government as patron, the great traditions at full strength simultaneously, and, tradition holds, the finest smiths of the realm rotating through Go-Toba’s court.
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.
For 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.
¥650,000