Thoughts on the Masamune currently up at Aoi Art?

[Toki]

3 hours ago, Lewis B said:

Has to be one of the ugliest, chintziest koshirae I've come across (IMHO, of course). Not sure if that helps its cause. Reminds me of a fairground stick of rock.

I like the Tsuba and Menuki actually. But the Saya puts me off, it looks so "Mall Ninja" somehow.

[PNSSHOGUN]

Hideyoshi would be spinning in his grave if he saw that dreadful mockery of the very fine original. 

[eternal_newbie]

38 minutes ago, PNSSHOGUN said:

Hideyoshi would be spinning in his grave if he saw that dreadful mockery of the very fine original.

 

If anyone has a link or pictures of the original koshirae this is based on, I'm now rather curious as to what it actually looks like...

[DirkO]

[Lewis B]

Anyone have the deets on this Masamune. What was the asking price. It has modern Juyo papers and sold quickly. 
https://nihontowatch.com/?listings=47739&alert_search=Masamune&listing=47739

[Hoshi]

Hi Lewis, 

 

Apologies this was a misfire, this item has been sold long ago - the dealer made a page change and it caused NW to pick it up by mistake. I immediately marked it as sold.

 

Best,

 

Hoshi

[Ilovekatana]

From what I can find it was listed back around 2008, I cant find a specific asking price as it just said please contact us. You can find it here https://web.archive.org/web/20081101101808/http://www.nona.dti.ne.jp/~sword/katana.htm 

edit:  it was added to the site around October 1st, was made for sale sometime between that and November 1st, and sold sometime between that and December 12th.

Edited May 29 by Ilovekatana
additional details

[Lewis B]

7 hours ago, Hoshi said:

Hi Lewis, 

 

Apologies this was a misfire, this item has been sold long ago - the dealer made a page change and it caused NW to pick it up by mistake. I immediately marked it as sold.

 

Best,

 

Hoshi

Well thanks for catching it so quickly. It was a lucky day for someone. Sounds like a rare opportunity to acquire an authenticated Masamune in exceptional condition. 
 

 

 

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Appraisal and Description of the Blade

The three masters—Yukimitsu, Norishige, and Masamune—who studied under Shintōgo Kunimitsu, further accentuated chikei (dark lines of martensite), kinsuji (golden lines), and nie (bright crystals) within the Sōshū tradition founded by Kunimitsu, successfully bringing the style to its ultimate perfection. Masamune, in particular, masterfully manipulated several types of steel with varying carbon contents and pushed the aesthetic beauty of nie to its absolute zenith, contributing monumentally to elevating the Japanese sword into a realm of pure art.

This specific blade is an ō-suriage (greatly shortened) unsigned specimen that Hon’ami Kōjun appraised as the work of Masamune, affixing a kin-zōgan (gold inlay) attribution. The grain (kitae) exhibits itame (wood grain) mixed with mokume (burl grain), covered in a thick layer of ji-nie, with prominent chikei coming through to present a well-kneaded, refined texture (nereta hadai). The temper line (hamon) is a notare (wavy) variation interspersed with gunome (undulating semicircles), heavily laden with nie that manifest various activities (hataraki). Both the steel topology (ji) and the cutting edge (ha) display an exquisite mastery of shifting nie dynamics. Kōjun’s attribution to Masamune is entirely convincing; the blade is in a superb state of health (kenzen), and the clear, radiant clarity (sae) across both the ji and ha deserves special commendation. (Excerpted from the Jūyō Tōken Zufu / Important Sword Masterpieces Registry)

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Structural Characteristics and Workmanship

 

• Shape (Sugata): Shinogi-zukuri (ridged style). Standard width (mihaba) with a moderate curve (sori), leading into a chū-kissaki (medium point) that is slightly extended (nobi-gokoro).
• Steel topology (Jitetsu): Itame mixed with mokume grain. The entire surface is densely blanketed with a thick coating of ji-nie, accompanied by striking, well-defined chikei.
• Temper Line (Hamon): Notare style intermingled with gunome and ko-ashi (small vertical activities). It is heavily laden with glittering nie, featuring patches of coarser nie (arame-no-nie) throughout. Active sunagashi (stream-like patterns) appear continuously alongside kinsuji and tobiyaki (detached spots of temper). The sections exhibiting fierce activity evoke a profound, ethereal elegance (yūgen), while the quieter, lower-burned sections actively interweave yubashiri (blurs of nie). The overall composition represents the absolute ideal of Masamune's tempering technique. Notably, the exceptional brilliance and luster of each individual grain of nie is extraordinary, standing out significantly even when compared to other works by the same smith.
• Tip (Bōshi): Richly swept (hakikake), taking on a fiery kaen (flame) appearance.
• Tang (Nakago): Ō-suriage (greatly shortened). Features a gold inlay attribution (kin-zōgan mei) reading "Masamune" on the obverse (omote) and "Hon'ami" on the reverse (ura).

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Appraiser's Commentary

Perhaps due to his forging technique of blending multiple types of steel with differing carbon contents, one frequently encounters Masamune blades where the texture appears coarse, or where the steel is genuinely rough. This tendency is notably more pronounced in long swords (katana) than in short daggers (tantō). Compounded by the scarce number of surviving long blades, finding a Masamune that is completely flawless, perfectly preserved, and crafted with superior workmanship is an exceedingly rare privilege.

The piece at hand is not only a textbook archetype of Masamune’s style, but it also remains in exemplary condition. It conveys the absolute essence of the Sōshū tradition—the sublime beauty of nie—without omission. A vast array of characteristics historically attributed to Masamune present themselves vividly across the blade. It is a masterpiece where his true prowess is fully unleashed and concentrated; a blade that serves as the ultimate textbook for understanding the very nature of Masamune's craft.

Among the works of Masamune—who stands at the absolute pinnacle of Japanese swordsmithing—this blade indubitably merits the designation of a masterpiece. It is a sublime treasure of such high caliber that its current Jūyō Tōken (Important Sword) status feels like an understatement of its true worth.

 

 

 

Edited May 30 by Lewis B

[Hoshi]

Hi Lewis, 

 

I am not sure what translation AI workflow you are using but please exercise care. If it doesn't sound like the NBHTK, it is likely contaminated by hallucinations.

 

I will endeavor to bring back accurate translations this summer to NW. 

 

The appropriate translation of the setsumei:  

 

Explanation

Among the students of Shintōgo Kunimitsu, the three smiths Yukimitsu, Norishige, and Masamune further emphasized chikei, kinsuji, and nie within the Sōshū tradition established by Kunimitsu, and in so doing led it toward completion. Masamune in particular mastered the subtle handling of several kinds of steel with differing carbon content, and brought the expressive potential of nie to its highest refinement, thereby contributing greatly to the elevation of the artistic character of the Japanese sword.

 

This katana is an ō-suriage and originally mumei blade that was appraised as Masamune by Hon’ami Kojun who then applied a gold-inlaid attribution. The forging shows itame with mixed mokume, with thickly formed ji-nie and plentiful chikei, yielding a well-refined surface texture. The hamon is a notare-based pattern mixed with gunome, well covered in nie and displaying varied activities; in both ji and ha it demonstrates the fascinating nuances of transformation within nie. Kojun's appraisal to Masamune is persuasive; the sword is kenzen (sound and well-preserved), and its vividly clear (saeru) ji and ha are especially worthy of attention.

 

A few points to note: 

Hon'ami Kojun's kiwame are suspect by default, we are late into the Hon'ami era and the pressure exercised upon the house by the corrupt Shogunal Councilor. Here, it is persuasive. If it was not, the NBHTK would have simply added Kinzogan ga aru. Another point: "fascinating nuances of transformation within nie" is a lexicon associated almost exclusively with Norishige, which says something regarding the direction of the work. 

 

It was indeed a lucky day for someone back in 2008, and also for the dealer: it is a rare privilege to be able to intermediate in the sales of such a special piece. It made him proud, and he left at the top of his website for the past 18 years. This speaks volume. 

 

Best,

 

Hoshi

 

 

 

[Curran]

On 1/1/2026 at 7:12 PM, reinhard said:

Just a wild guess from a distance, but the surface steel seems to suffer from lenghtwise cracks appearing when a bent blade is straightened again.

 

reinhard

 

 

You beat me to it. It also seems Chris wrote it up before.

When I was more into swords than fittings, I was shown an Inoue Shinkai with similar damage. 

That burned into the brain fairly hard.

 

[PNSSHOGUN]

The Hideyoshi Koshirae also appear in Paul Martin's book:

[AussieMacca1972]

This sword was on offer at Katanaza back in March when I was there. Took photos of it and can post if people are interested. Asking price was ¥35M.

It didn’t draw much attention  

 

Mark