Markus

Thank you Peter!

E version is now available here: http://www.lulu.com/shop/markus-sesko/e-masters-of-keicho-shinto/ebook/product-22366618.html

Nakago has strong sori and the tip is a simple and unsophisticated kurijiri. [muzôsa means here that the saki was simply rounded off and became so a kurijiri, i.e. the smith didn't have a textbook kurijiri in mind when finishing the tip of the tang] It is unclear if the tang was finished with a plane or a file. [Lit. "As for the yasurime, it is unclear if they were done with a plane or a file."] I would also rather translate the part 細かく as "itame is fine" (instead of "thin"). As for the other parts, the nioiguchi is rather subdued and at the last sentence, the very end refers to the part that comes before. So: The blade has a wide mihaba, a rather shallow sori, a wide shinogi with the shinogi-ji at about the center of the blade, and deep machi, thus we can see very well the characteristic features of an early Nihonto. BTW: Idea is not crazy. Its the best way to do it, IMHO.

@Peter, Jean: Will talk to my client as we did this project kind of together. Let you know but I am pretty sure I will make an eBook version available soon.

Let me allow to annouce a little project that is a follow-up of a compilation I did for a client of mine last year. It's quasi a catalog to a fictional, ideal exhibition on swords from that era. It features several works (about 100) of the then, well-known masters (35 in total) like Umetada Myoju, Horikawa Kunihiro, Horikawa Kuniyasu, Osumi no Jo Masahiro, Dewa no Daijo Kunimichi, Etchu no Kami Masatoshi, Kinmichi, Kashu Kanewaka, Hizen Tadayoshi, Hankei, Nanki Shigekuni, Sagami no Kami Masatsune, Echizen Yasutsugu, Owari Nobutaka, Harima Teruhiro, Hida no Kami Ujifusa and so on. Details can be found on my site: http://markussesko.com/2015/09/16/masters-of-keicho-shinto/ Thanks for your attention.

Me for my part, my bid on Kanenaga was made up as follows: First of all, ths combination of shape, i.e. time of production, and interpretation speaks straightforward for Soden-Bizen. Nice to see that so many went outright for Soden-Bizen. Hats off! I was then stuck by the boshi, the Masamune-esque boshi with no kaeri and strong tendency to shimaba. Thus I thought smith must be nearer to the initial Soden-Bizen guys and I thought for a second of Nagashige but the hamon is a bit too wide for a Nagashige, especially towards the bottom of the blade. Also Chogi came to mind but the elements of the hamon feel just too small dimensioned and densely arranged for him. And from a Kanemitsu, I would have expected a hint more slant and a hint more pronounced, formulated gunome. So I ended up at either Morikage or Kanenaga what brought me back to the boshi. I just associate a more different boshi than rest of the ha with Kanenaga and a more continuous running of the hamon into the boshi with Morikage. And in the end, the slight approach to mimigata towards the base made me stay with Kanenaga as he was a student of Chogi.

The signature aims at an early work of Masahide. I say "aims" because it is a gimei. I am adding a picture with an authentic mei for comparison that dates two years (i.e. Tenmei four, 1784) later than the blade in question (which is dated Tenmei two BTW, 1782). Also look at the link below to a blade that is designated as juyo-bunkazai of Gifu Prefecture (and which I added to the pic). Please note the differences in how certain characters are executed (e.g. "moto" in "Akimoto" and the family name "Kawabe") and the fluidity and "crispness" of the mei. http://www.manabi.pref.gunma.jp/bunkazai/02603.htm

I tend towards Osafune Kanenaga (aka Kencho)...

I think it is "nigaru" (焠), a rather uncommon term for "harening." So "hardened by..." Not sure about the name but the first character also reads "Omi" or "Tomi" as Japanese family name. So maybe "Omi/Tomi Tadao kore o niragu".

Yes, the character for "katana" is read in this context as "horu", i.e. "carved (by)".

Hi Klaus, The info comes from the catalog to a 2010 Ise Shrine exhibition that is titled: Gendaito no 100-nen: Fukkô to Keishû - Chôkokan Kaikan 100-shûnen Kinenten: Zuroku (100 Years of Gendaitô: Renaissance and Succession - Commemoration Exhibition to the 100th Anniversary of the Opening of the Chôkokan) 現代刀の100年 復興と継承 徴古館開館100周年記念展 図録 Don't have a copy though but found a reference to Okimasa's earlier name online. Also that he signed with Kazunori (和則) for a while. As for the authenticity, well, my gut feeling tells me that this might be the real thing. Don't know if it would make sense to forge such a rare signature variant of Okimasa (and not a Okimasa mei right away). But you never know these days...

Hi Klaus, The mei reads "Oshû Iwashiro-jûnin Tsukamoto Kazuyuki saku" (奥州岩代住人塚本和行作) and the left part "Tôyama Mitsuru'ô no teinai ni oite" (於頭山満翁邸内, "made on the grounds of Tôyama Mitsuru"). It is this Tôyama Mitsuru: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%C5%8Dyama_Mitsuru "Kazuyuki" was a name Tsukamoto Okimasa had used for a while. I have to add that info to my Gendai project.

Seems that my last announcement made wider rounds as more material keeps coming these days, what is really great! Just don't want that people approach me after the book is out and say that they could have contributed many important references. As Brian said: If you have a great or promising gendaito, give me the chance to published it and save so information for future generations of collectors.

I have only seen less than a handful over the years and would consider them as rarity. Maybe because the blade was just shortened something was arranged with Hon'ami so that the older paper can stay.

Hi Dirk, The missing parts are: 少 - In the part after shoshin, so "a little bit suriage ニ - Particle ni in the part after Kyôwa three. 承認 - as "confirmation" atop of Kôitsu.

No problem Piers. Still don't know why they decided to do it that way, i.e. split up the translation to two different guys. I mean, it is not that I was charging a fortune or that the NBTHK is so poor that they are only able to afford half of a translation and have the other half give to someone who does it at the side and for free... I mean, I would not care if there are some typos or a few ambiguous sentences but the parts done by the other party are just straightforward too bad to have it print that way (I am far far from anywhere near perfect but these texts read really bad, sorry). That's why I can't think they were done by Gavin Frew, as Michael suggested, who has published quite some stuff. I wish my name would have been removed from that catalog as it feels like a blemish. I take full responsibility for my own work but I don't want to be associated forever with something that I did not do and that is too sub-par... So I can fully understand you Piers in thinking about letting them drop your name.

Maybe on of those: Yoshifusa (吉房), 1st gen., Bunmei (文明, 1469-1487), Yamashiro – “Heianjō Yoshifusa” (平安城吉房), “Sanjō Yoshifusa” (三条吉房), Heianjō school, gunome-midare in nioi-deki with ko-nie, some blades have a tight nioiguchi, wazamono Yoshifusa (吉房), 2nd gen., Kyōroku (享禄, 1528-1532), Yamashiro – “Heianjō Yoshifusa” (平安城吉房), “Heianjō Yoshifusa saku” (平安城吉房作), “Sanjō Yoshifusa Izumi no Kuni ni oite saku” (三条吉房於泉国作), he also worked in Izumi province, chū-sugha mixed with ko-midare, gunome-midare, notare-midare, chūjō-saku Yoshifusa (吉房), Genki (元亀, 1570-1573), Yamashiro – “Yoshifusa” (吉房), “Heianjō Yoshifusa” (平安城吉房)

Yamato no Kuni-jûnin Kanenaga saku (大和国住人包永作). Very big name, signature very different from that big name...

I see. Thanks for the update Guido!

You are right. This option is indeed available for a while now. Do you know by chance when they introduced that (I kind of think it was just a couple of years ago or so)?

Hi Hoanh, Yes, the suriage point was dropped for TH. Major changes are that you now need Hozon and you have to go through Hozon, and Tokubetsu Hozon to receive Juyo (and higher). So no longer any Kicho or other older Ninteisho are accepted to submit for TH. But, and what they did not say in that part as it does not concern the standards per se, you can now submit for Hozon and TH at the same time and you get the paper the blade, koshirae, or fitting qualifies for. Doesn't save you much money though but time (if you think your piece is really promising for TH or if you are going anyway for Juyo).

Hi Ken, Mukansa is a title that is solely granted by the NBTHK and connected to their annual sword forging contest. I.e. if you win several top prices in a row (I think it is eight, or six plus two special prices) then they take you quasi out of competing with the other smiths and no longer judge your work. As Malcolm said, the prefectural designations are decided by the administrative department of the cultural affairs office of the individual Prefecture and as far as I know, these departments and the national board heavily rely on the NBTHK Mukansa rank to decide which smith should become intangible cultural property.

The paper is supposed to be by Hon'ami Koson but it raises a big red flag as it is dated November 3rd 1957 and Koson died in 1955! That's now the second highly doubtful Hon'ami origami I have seen in recent times.

The sayagaki is from December 8th 1950 and by Inami Hakusui.

Post mainly those that were shared with me and on my FB wall, so that's why they might look somewhat egocentric.