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I received some flak recently from the popcorn gallery about a statement I made previously about the horimono being the most essential element in an Ikkanshi Tadatsuna. A few interesting examples came up recently that confirmed what I've been saying (I mean, I do not pull this kind of statement out of my butt... I am told this kind of thing by people like Tanobe sensei and Kurokawa san and then it's verified in the marketplace, I don't tend to go around making things up though that claim is often made).

 

Anyway Aoi has a fine Tadatsuna wakizashi on their site now:

 

https://www.aoijapan.com/wakizashiawataguchi-ikkanshi-tadatsuna-hori-do-saku/

And this blade is actually short even for a wak, 46 cm... but it features good horimono by the smith along with his attestation that he made the horimono. Tadatsuna almost need to be looked at as buying a horimono with a sword as a frame. You don't want a junk sword but getting yourself bent out of shape on the sword or buying one that is long and nice without horimono misses the point. Aoi has sold blades like that in the 2.6-2.8M yen in the past, good long katana but lacking the horimono.

 

This example entirely agrees with what I've said in my blog where I highlight which might be his master work which is only 63 cm... many longer examples exist but that one has the best horimono of them all.

 

If you took the time to look through the Dai Token Ichi catalog you will find another Tadatsuna, and the way the dealer featured the listing, they didn't even bother to show the sugata of the blade. Rather, they made a point to highlight the horimono and nakago indicating that the smith made the horimono himself. So the sugata is basically relatively unimportant compared to these other elements when it comes to this smith, so much so that it's not even used in advertising this particular blade.

 

Understanding these things, understanding what makes a certain smith special and precious, and then so what metrics apply to that smith, or that school, or that period in terms of separating the wheat from the chaff is extremely important for both dealers and for collectors. Otherwise as a collector you pat yourself on the back for buying a "cheap" example but the reason it was cheap is because the market is efficient: it is lacking the features that would make it more expensive and you may be ignorant of what those features are.

 

Like a coin collector who knows the ins and outs, the rare years or weird kinds of marks that may appear on just a very few coins, they've studied all of the subject matter and know which elements are those that separate the most collectible from the least. And so those metrics have a direct bearing on the price.

 

With Tsuda Sukehiro a shorthand can be found in the signature. Those signed Echizen no Kami Sukehiro, are superceded by those signed Tsuda Echizen no Kami Sukehiro, and those in turn superceded by those done with round grass script in the mei, those are called in dealer circles "maru Tsuda." These form a rule of thumb. A certain example from the first type can pass Juyo and a certain example of the last type may not pass Juyo, but people who try to make statistical conclusions from one item are falling into a fallacy of anecdotal evidence.

 

The groups, taken as groups, are partitioned into generally better work as the mei evolves, the mei evolves along with Sukehiro's experience and development as a swordsmith. So this information is NOT why the blade becomes more valuable, but it happens in the case of this smith to be a handy indicator of when in his career it was made and so what the skill level of the maker was at the time. It just parallels his development.

 

When a dealer comes and a customer doesn't understand the difference the dealer can conflate it all together and say well this one signed like this is a bargain because the average price of Sukehiro is higher... but the average price of Sukehiro is higher because in general a blade signed that way in the example the dealer is pushing is falling into a lesser category. Again, standout examples exist and that's why you should study and know what you see, but dealers who buy on the one hand with advanced metrics and then turn around and say "hogwash" when they sell are engaging in a form of ignorance arbitrage. They are buying in an informed market and selling in an uninformed market, and that allows there to be profit.

 

Nobody should be telling you the horimono of a Tadatsuna is not an important part or less than the most significant part of the blade. A well preserved and excellently executed horimono is what we seek in this blade, along with the smith's attestation that he made it.

 

This of course is the precise reason that makes that aspect of these works a target for fakery. Because the guys faking it tend to know how important it is, and even their attempt to fake it might go over the heads of people who are buying simply on length.

 

 

 

85033008200-{Ikkanshi Tadatsuna}.jpg

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Not sure why someone would give flak over something that is fairly logical.  Makes sense, and when you are buying work by smiths famous for certain traits, then those are what you focus on. Like having a Yoshimichi with no sudareba.

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