Darin Steele Posted August 28 Report Posted August 28 (edited) Type: Wakizashi Ubu, Suriage or O-Suriage: Ubu Mei : (Mumei, Signature) Kinpunmei Papered or not and by whom? NBTHK Hozon Era/Age Sue Koto Shirasaya, Koshirae or Bare Blade? Shirasaya and Koshirae Nagasa/Blade Length 45.3 cm (17.835 in) Sori : 1.5 cm Hamon Type : Sanbonsugi and Gunome Jihada : Masame, and Itame-Mokume Other Hataraki Visible : Sunagashi, Ashi, Yo, Kinsuji Flaws : None seen Sword Location : USA Will ship to : Worldwide Payment Methods Accepted : All Price and Currency : $8500 USD Returns Policy: No Other Info and Full Description : For Sale — 1 Torso Cutting-Test (Saidan-mei) Wakizashi, Kanemoto Line with Kinpunmei and Kaō Price: $8500 Accepting Offers I’ve greatly enjoyed the study of this fine piece over the past few months. This wakizashi comes with NBTHK Hozon papers, shirasaya, and a full, well-fitting koshirae. It is ubu, with a very attractive and substantial sugata, and a good polish. Below is the amazing historical context. Of particular interest is the surviving old lacquer inscription on the nakago, which reads: 兼元正 （花押） 応水野氏望 天明□十月浅倉十兵衛（花押） 一ノ胴切落 Translation: Kanemoto Masa— + kaō At the request of the Mizuno clan Tenmei Era, October; Asakura Jūbei + kaō Severed through the ichi-no-dō (first torso section). The inscription is especially significant because it records an actual cutting test performed on the sword. The NBTHK considered this historical inscription important enough to record it directly on the Hozon paper, where the sword is identified as a Kanemoto-lineage work. ——Historical Context and references—— In a specific October during the Tenmei era (1781–1789), a test cut was performed at the order of the Mizuno clan by a man named Asakura Jūbei (浅倉十兵衛). While little is presently known about Jūbei himself, his name and kaō survive alongside the record of the test, giving us an unusually tangible glimpse into the sword’s working history. The Mizuno were an influential warrior family who rose to prominence during the Muromachi period and later held Kariya Castle in Mikawa Province for generations. They became an important family during the Edo period and served the Tokugawa shogunate. The presence of a Mizuno-related commission in the inscription therefore provides an interesting historical context for the sword. As for the Kanemoto lineage, the name 兼元 was used by several generations of Mino smiths, beginning before and continuing after the famous second-generation Magoroku Kanemoto (孫六兼元), who worked in Akasaka in Mino around the beginning of the sixteenth century. Magoroku worked during the Eishō (1504–1521) and Daiei (1521–1528) eras and is regarded, alongside the second-generation Izumi no Kami Kanesada (Nosada), as one of the greatest Mino smiths of his time. ——Sword Features and Workmanship—— The sword is monstrous in size considering its length and features very fine detail in the jigane. Being based primarily in Nioi, the hamon is quite visually appealing, showing a more chaotic sanbonsugi with high peaks and togari on the omote side, but a more calm hako gunome with shorter togari on the ura side. Ashi, yo, and kinsuji can be seen alongside beautiful spots of ko nie and sunagashi. Its boshi is O-maru/ Midare-komi with a longer kaeri. Its jigane is particularly beautiful, being a combination of a long, uniform Masame in the shinogi-ji and a straight itame with mokume in the ji towards the ha. The combination of Hamon styles and differentiation in the jihada makes this piece a joy to look at. ——Koshirae—— Its mounts are in a working koshirae, not too gaudy, but elegant. I believe it has been rewrapped, and now features a jabara-maki. Its fittings are matching the same crane motif, save for the fuchi-kashira, which feature an interesting twist design and a gunbai motif respectively. ——Measurements—— Nagasa: 45.3 cm Sori: 1.5 cm Width at the base: 3 cm Thickness at the base: 8 mm Width at the tip: 2 cm Thickness at the tip: 5.5 mm Thanks for looking everyone Edited August 28 by Darin Steele 2 Quote
ChrisW Posted August 28 Report Posted August 28 I know this guy! He's a real scu.... kidding! Darin is a great guy and his taste in blades and fittings is impeccable. See you at the next ITK meeting. I've gotten my yoroi-doshi and orikaeshimei Tadamitsu back. Both are fantastic. Best of luck on your sale! This looks like a fantastic piece. 4 Quote
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