Modern Japan made the sword an exile, then an artwork: the 1876 Haitōrei ended sword wearing, the postwar ban nearly ended the craft, and the revival built on the NBTHK’s founding in 1948 remade it as a licensed art.
This is a katana by Kasama-ikkansai Shigetsugu, a renowned modern smith active in the Showa era. Forged in 1937, it features a robust build with a wide moto-haba and saki-haba, and a beautiful choji-midare hamon. The blade comes with NBTHK Hozon papers and is housed in a shirasaya with a silver foil habaki.
NihontoWatchmei · Taisho (1912-1926) · nagasa 63.2cm · sori 1.3cm
Tokyo · around 1912-1926
Tōken Taikan top 63%
7 pieces on the market now
The modern era (1868 to today)
Modern Japan made the sword an exile, then an artwork: the 1876 Haitōrei ended sword wearing, the postwar ban nearly ended the craft, and the revival built on the NBTHK’s founding in 1948 remade it as a licensed art.
Certifies a genuine blade worth preserving: a signature confirmed correct, or, if unsigned, an era, province, and school that the NBTHK can reliably identify.
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 siteNo 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 Kasama-ikkansai Shigetsugu, a renowned modern smith active in the Showa era. Forged in 1937, it features a robust build with a wide moto-haba and saki-haba, and a beautiful choji-midare hamon. The blade comes with NBTHK Hozon papers and is housed in a shirasaya with a silver foil habaki.
NihontoWatchmei · Taisho (1912-1926) · nagasa 63.2cm · sori 1.3cm
Tokyo · around 1912-1926
Tōken Taikan top 63%
7 pieces on the market now
The modern era (1868 to today)
Modern Japan made the sword an exile, then an artwork: the 1876 Haitōrei ended sword wearing, the postwar ban nearly ended the craft, and the revival built on the NBTHK’s founding in 1948 remade it as a licensed art.
Certifies a genuine blade worth preserving: a signature confirmed correct, or, if unsigned, an era, province, and school that the NBTHK can reliably identify.
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 siteNo cooling-off period or returns; refund only if the purchased sword is proven fake, capped at purchase price (excludes commission sales, accessories, auction items).
