Help identifying Japanese sword mei – possible Kanefusa

[Hiro nakamura]

Hello,

 

I would appreciate help identifying the mei on a Japanese sword I recently obtained.

The blade appears traditionally made with a visible hada and a midare-style hamon that somewhat resembles Bizen influence. The kissaki is well preserved and the blade seems to have been polished at some point.

The signature on the nakago seems to read something like “... Kanefusa”, possibly related to a smith from Seki in Mino province, but I am not confident in the reading.

I have attached photos of the mei and part of the blade.

Any help translating the signature or identifying the possible smith would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you very much for your time.

[Ray Singer]

The mei is Kanemitsu. Unclear which Kanemitsu that this might be. There were a number of Kanemitsu working in Mino, and in other regions as well.

[Hiro nakamura]

48 minutes ago, Ray Singer said:

The mei is Kanemitsu. Unclear which Kanemitsu that this might be. There were a number of Kanemitsu working in Mino, and in other regions as well.

Thank you for your reply.

 

From the hamon and overall appearance of the blade, it seems to have a rather Bizen-like character to me, especially with what looks like choji-midare activity.

Because of that, I was wondering if it could possibly be related to a Bizen Kanemitsu rather than one of the later Mino smiths. Of course I may be mistaken.

Do you think the workmanship points more toward Bizen or Mino tradition?

[Ray Singer]

It would be helpful to see better photos, however I do not see an association here with So-den Bizen Kanemitsu or his school and as far as the appearance of the mei and nakago that also does not evoke a feeling of Bizen. 

[PNSSHOGUN]

The cross hatch filing pattern on the Nakago are textbook Mino Den. 

[Hiro nakamura]

Thank you very much.
I now have a much better understanding of the signature and the origin of the blade.

I really appreciate your insightful advice and the time you took to help me.