NihontoWatchThe Aizu Kanesada school began in the late Muromachi period around Koji, when Furukawa Seiemon, the son of the third generation Kanesada, moved to Aizu at the request of the Aizu feudal lord Ashina. Among this school, which continued through successive generations, this work is by the tenth generation Kanesada. The tenth generation Kanesada was called Furukawa Omi, and works with nenkio remain from the Bunsei, Tenpo, and Ansei eras. He initially signed his mei as Kanesada, and in later years changed his mei to Kaneuji. He signed with mei such as "Mutsu Aizu ju Kanesada," "Aizu ju Kanesada," "Nagamichi Kanesada Michitatsu tomo ni tsutsushinde kore o kitaeru," "Oshu Aiyo ju Kanesada," and "Mutsu Aifu shin Kanesada." The taihai of this work has a nagasa of just under 2 shaku 3 sun, with ordinary mihaba and kasane, a moderate sori, and a chu-kissaki, resulting in a single sword with a slender and beautiful sugata. The kitae is a well-kneaded itame hada mixed with nagare-gokoro near the ha, with jinie appearing thickly in mijin, and chikei enters. The hamon is a well-cleared suguha. The boshi continues as sugu and returns in komaru. The nakago is ubu, with sujikai yasurime, and bears the toko mei and nenkio. This sword is a work from Ansei 5 by the tenth generation Aizu Kanesada. It shows a dekikuchi that indicates it was forged carefully throughout, and we introduce it as a superior sword of this smith with a dignified character. Shirasaya, shakudo-gise ichiju habaki, Tokubetsu Hozon Token kanteisho.
Certificate reading — 銘 陸奥会津臣兼定（十一代） 安政五年八月日
NihontoWatchOffered by World Seiyudo
7 on the market
Machine translation from the shop's Japanese · may contain errors ·
Mino-den · Mutsu · around 1818-1869
1 piece on the market now
Mino-den · Iwashiro
7 pieces on the market now
| Smith | Era | Designated |
|---|---|---|
| Kanesada兼定 | 1818-1869 | 0 |
| Kanesada兼定 | 1624-1644 | 0 |
| Kanesada兼定 | 1624-1644 | 0 |
| Kanesada兼定 | 1655-1658 | 0 |
| Kanesada兼定 | 1661-1673 | 0 |
The Shinshintō revival
Around 1800 Suishinshi Masahide argued in his writings that the craft must return to the old masters’ methods: the fukkotō revival. His greatest successor Naotane worked convincingly in Bizen and Sōshū manners that had been dead for centuries.
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.
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).
¥1,200,000