The twentieth century nearly killed the craft twice: wartime distortion, then the occupation ban. The NBTHK’s founding in 1948 and licensed forging from 1953 rebuilt the sword as an art, crowned by Living National Treasures and the mukansa rank.
This is a katana by Okubo Kazuhira, a Mukansa-ranked swordsmith born in Kanagawa Prefecture in 1943 and a student of Living National Treasure Miyairi Akihira. The blade is long at 79.0cm, with a wide moto-haba and saki-haba, and a strong koshi-zori, reminiscent of a Kamakura period tachi. It features a finely forged ko-itame hada with ji-nie, and a gunome-choji-midare hamon with active hataraki.
NihontoWatch
Sagami · around 1926-1989
4 pieces on the market now
Shōwa to the present: destruction and revival
The twentieth century nearly killed the craft twice: wartime distortion, then the occupation ban. The NBTHK’s founding in 1948 and licensed forging from 1953 rebuilt the sword as an art, crowned by Living National Treasures and the mukansa rank.
We could not find an authenticity certificate on the seller’s listing. Japanese swords and fittings are normally papered by the NBTHK (or the NTHK). Without one, the attribution is the seller’s own assessment and has not been independently verified — treat it with caution and ask the dealer about certification before buying.
No cooling-off period or returns; refund only if the purchased sword is proven fake, capped at purchase price (excludes commission sales, accessories, auction items).
This is a katana by Okubo Kazuhira, a Mukansa-ranked swordsmith born in Kanagawa Prefecture in 1943 and a student of Living National Treasure Miyairi Akihira. The blade is long at 79.0cm, with a wide moto-haba and saki-haba, and a strong koshi-zori, reminiscent of a Kamakura period tachi. It features a finely forged ko-itame hada with ji-nie, and a gunome-choji-midare hamon with active hataraki.
NihontoWatchSagami · around 1926-1989
4 pieces on the market now
Shōwa to the present: destruction and revival
The twentieth century nearly killed the craft twice: wartime distortion, then the occupation ban. The NBTHK’s founding in 1948 and licensed forging from 1953 rebuilt the sword as an art, crowned by Living National Treasures and the mukansa rank.
We could not find an authenticity certificate on the seller’s listing. Japanese swords and fittings are normally papered by the NBTHK (or the NTHK). Without one, the attribution is the seller’s own assessment and has not been independently verified — treat it with caution and ask the dealer about certification before buying.
No cooling-off period or returns; refund only if the purchased sword is proven fake, capped at purchase price (excludes commission sales, accessories, auction items).
