Muromachi turned sword making into an industry: the uchigatana rose with massed infantry warfare, Osafune and Seki produced bundle swords beside custom orders, and the Ming trade carried Japanese blades abroad by the tens of thousands.
NihontoWatchNihontoWatchAmong the Bizen mono from the late Muromachi period referred to as Sue-Bizen mono, works with the Sukesada mei are numerous, and among them, Yosozaemon-no-jo, Genbe-no-jo, and Hikobe-no-jo are famous. During the Sengoku period when there was a high demand for swords, Bizen-to were forged in great numbers for many battles; while there is a bad habit in the sword world of disparaging Sue-Bizen mono that do not have a zokumei meikiri as kazu-uchi (mass-produced items), they were not crudely manufactured, and among works without a zokumei meikiri, many surprisingly well-made pieces can be seen, including excellent works where a zokumei individual kiwame is even possible. The sword has been machi-okuri by several centimeters since the time of production, and the nakago is slightly bent. In its current state, the difference between the motohaba and sakihaba is not conspicuously wide, and the grand sugata with an extended kissaki is impressive. The jigane is a well-kneaded mokume that is slightly hadadachi, with a faint utsurigokoro and some tobiyaki. The hamon is a bright and clear nioiguchi with a gunome-midare composition, where ashi frequently enter the heads of the gunome to form choji, sunagashi is seen throughout the ha-chu, and the boshi is midare-komi with a maru kaeri. The accompanying saber gunto koshirae is a Meiji 7 regulation Army junior officer's two-handed saber exterior; saber-style gunto koshirae of this era mainly housed swords from older periods, and this koshirae also houses an old sword with a graceful Muromachi period sugata. The tsuka has no rattling and is firm, but because the attachment and removal of the nakago is a bit tight, it is recommended to apply plenty of sword oil to the nakago before attaching the tsuka. ~ Regarding the accompanying Army junior officer's two-handed saber gunto koshirae ~ Government-issued non-commissioned officer and soldier blades used Western steel (saber metal/military-standard sword steel) and were machine-made blades with a nakago shaped from the start to fit a one-handed grip tsuka, but officers had a strong tendency to mount traditional nihonto. For that purpose, forced processing of the nihonto nakago shape was necessary, while on the other hand, the one-handed grip tsuka of the Western sword style intended for thrusting did not suit the traditional Japanese slashing techniques, except for the cavalry branch. The two-handed grip saber gunto koshirae appeared to solve these problems. Until the changeover to the Showa 7 Army Type 32-kai non-commissioned officer sword, the Showa 9 Army officer's new gunto, and the Showa 12 Navy officer's new gunto, a truly diverse range of variations existed due to differences in the tsuba goken, the back metal of the tsuka, one to two haikan, takabori patterns, and so on. Even after the new gunto were established for both the Army and Navy, it does not mean that everything was replaced with the new exterior. In the case of wartime, the Army permitted the use of items similar to the new gunto (namely, old gunto, etc.), and the Navy allowed the new gunto and long swords to coexist. Therefore, there are many examples of older officers who had traditionally worn old gunto, or young officers who had inherited old gunto, continuing to use old gunto until the end of the war. (Reprinted from Mr. Ohmura's Gunto Website)
Offered by Toushin
We couldn’t find current papers for this piece. Ask the dealer whether it has been, or can be, submitted to shinsa. — Hoshi
As written by the shop
Machine translation from the shop's Japanese · may contain errors ·
The Muromachi period (1392 to 1573)
Muromachi turned sword making into an industry: the uchigatana rose with massed infantry warfare, Osafune and Seki produced bundle swords beside custom orders, and the Ming trade carried Japanese blades abroad by the tens of thousands.
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.
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¥880,000