kaku-mune blade with kikumon crest

[nihonto_1]

Hi - 

 

while browsing around i cam across this Blade - apparently from a well regarded Victorian collector's collection - described as a early 19th century sword.

the pictures are not my own and the blade is not in hand to take any other images. Blade is 70cm long

I was interested in the combination of the kaku-mune and the Kikumon

generally it seems in rather poor shape.

 

is this a from a naginata? and has the tang been cut down? seems a very abrupt ending.

 

 

Edited Thursday at 09:49 PM by nihonto_1

[Ray Singer]

(Kikumon Ichi) Kawachi (no) kami Sukesada 

 

Bizen (no) kuni Osafune ju 

[nihonto_1]

@Ray Singer thank you. 

Now I understand the ichi bit.

 

So from the early 1700

Would the tang be suriage? Just seems very 'cut off'

 

 

 

[Ray Singer]

This is the second generation of the Shinto Yokoyama Sukesada lineage, circa Genroku (1688). It appears to be suriage.

[Bruce Pennington]

18 hours ago, nihonto_1 said:

Now I understand the ichi bit.

 

Will,

I track these a bit, and would like to hear your understanding of the ichi added to the kiku.  I was once told it was a tip-o-the-hat to the ichimongi school.

[Ray Singer]

Bruce, the kikumon + Ichi kanji (kikuichi) is a reference to the Kiku Gyo-saku produced by Emperor Gotoba. You see this as a tribute appearing in later swords, such as several Yokoyama smiths, Shimada Sukemune and others. 

 

https://markussesko.com/2013/03/04/about-the-goban-kaji/

[Bruce Pennington]

18 minutes ago, Ray Singer said:

Kiku Gyo-saku produced by Emperor Gotoba.

Thanks Ray!  So, way back in 1183-98.  Were these swords in the time that Japan went away from the straight blade to the curved blade?

[nihonto_1]

Thank you Ray. 

Bruce, my 'understanding' was on a much more novice level I am afraid. I understood the kikimon, but my 1st time seeing the ichi.

 

 

So if kikumon ichi, forged after 1701 when permission was given. 

 

Are there any thoughts on the kaku-mune / suriage/ 70cm blade length?

 

From my readings the size makes it too long for a naginata, which seems to become more wakizashi in length. So was this a revival piece made as tachi and then cut down? Or just a larger blade with a larger tang that maybe was cut down later in the Edo or possibly early 20th century to fit more modern mounts?

 

 

W

[Ray Singer]

On 9/4/2026 at 11:01 AM, Bruce Pennington said:

Were these swords in the time that Japan went away from the straight blade to the curved blade?

 

This was at the early Kamakura period, a couple of centuries after the evolution of the Japanese sword to its more modern form of shinogi-zukuri with sori. 

[Bruce Pennington]

On 9/4/2026 at 7:41 AM, Ray Singer said:

Bruce, the kikumon + Ichi kanji (kikuichi) is a reference to the Kiku Gyo-saku produced by Emperor Gotoba. You see this as a tribute appearing in later swords, such as several Yokoyama smiths, Shimada Sukemune and others. 

 

https://markussesko.com/2013/03/04/about-the-goban-kaji/

Again, thanks Ray.  I just got around to reading Markus' article from your link.  That cleared it up for me.  I was able to condense Markus' description in a way to explain that on my Stamps doc.