Important Japanese Swords and Armour from the Paul L. Davidson Collection
Important Japanese Swords and Armour from the Paul L. Davidson Collection
A katana | Signed Soshu ju Tsunahiro (Tsunahiro, a resident of Sagami Province) | Muromachi period, 16th century
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March 25, 03:17 PM GMT
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Description
A katana
Signed Soshu ju Tsunahiro (Tsunahiro, a resident of Sagami Province)
Muromachi period, 16th century
Sugata [configuration]: high shinogi-zukuri, shin no mune, pronounced saki-zori
Kitae [forging pattern]: pronounced and densely packed o-itame hada, prominent masame towards the mune, covered in ji-nie
Hamon [tempering pattern]: widely hardened gunome-midare which shows muneyaki from the monouchi towards the tip, elegantly tempered hitatsura in style that is mixed with kinsuji and sunagashi and that features plenty of activity, the habuchi in scattered ara-nie
Boshi [tip]: wide kaeri, tending to hitatsura, deeply tempered in ichimai style and with intense muneyuki
Horimono [carvings]: deeply carved dokko ken on the omote, the ura with bonji above gomabashi
Nakago [tang]: ubu, tanago-bara [‘fish-belly form] the yasurime file markings are kiri, one mekug-ana
In shirasaya [plain wood scabbard] with sayagaki by Tanobe Michihiro
Koshirae [mount]: the black lacquered leather ground tachi saya decorated in gold hiramaki-e and takamaki-e with hanabishi, shakudo nanako fittings, the gilt menuki in the form of further hanabishi, the iron tsuba mounted with silver seppa
Nagasa [length from kissaki to machi]: 67.6 cm., 26⅝ in.
Sori [curvature]: 2.4 cm., ⅞ in.
Moto-haba [width at the machi]: 2.9 cm., 1⅛ in.
Kasane: 0.6 cm., ¼ in.
The blade accompanied by a certificate of registration as Tokubetsu Hozon Token [Sword Especially Worthy of Preservation], no. 1003339 issued by the Nihon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kyokai [Society for the Preservation of the Japanese Art Sword], dated Heisei 27 (2015).
The tachi koshirae accompanied by a certificate of registration as Koshu Tokubetsu Kicho [First Grade, Especially Important], no. 5297 issued by the Nihon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kyokai [Society for the Preservation of the Japanese Art Sword], dated Showa 50 (1975).
The sayagaki by Tanobe Michihiro has been translated as:
Tsunahiro, from Sagami Province
Ubu nakago, there is a five-character signature, Eiroku era.
He is the second-generation sword smith of Tsunahiro.
The tempering pattern is hitatsura, one of his most preferred types
This blade is extremely high level among his works, the carving is also skillful.
Blade Length: 67.7 cm.
Judged in the Year of 2015 by Tanzan Hendo and kao [cursive monogram].
Yoshikawa Koen et al, Yushuto zuroku [Catalogue of Excellent Swords], volume two (Tokyo, 1979), p. 18, no. 13.
Iimura Yoshiaki, Yumei koto taikan [An Encyclopaedia of Famous Old Swords] (Tokyo, 1982), p. 372.
Mitsuo Shibata, Nihon no meito [Important Japanese Art Swords] (Tokyo 1966), p. 160.
Shibata Mitsuo, Katana mei nyumon [An Introduction to Famous Swords] (Tokyo, 1971), p. 203.
Yoshikawa Koen et. al., trans. Gordon Robson, Sue-Koto: Japanese Swords of the 15th & 16th Centuries, volume one, (Albuquerque, 2006), p. 145, no. 53.
Art of the Samurai: The Paul L. Davidson Collection (New York, 2023), p. 34 and 82.
Compared to the first generation Tsunahiro, the second generation Tsunahiro displays a more modest hitatsura [patches of tempering over much of a blade]. Most of his tempering pattern are in gunome style, or convex arcs running parallel to the blade edge.
In Sue-Koto: Japanese Swords of the 15th & 16th Centuries, Yoshikawa Koen explains:
‘In comparison to the work of the first generation, the hitatsura is more restrained, and blades like this one in which the emphasis is on a gunome temper are conspicuous. There are few long lengthened, magnificently shaped katana as the majority are blades with a well-balanced shape like this work. Moreover, hira-zukuri wakizashi are often see. Skilfully done carvings such as so-no-kurikara (abstract dragon entwining a ken) are his speciality. These works do not just pay lip service to the tradition as there are many extant works that have an all over style of work that clearly reflects the true traditional lineage of the Soshu-den.'1
1. Yoshikawa Koen et. al., trans. Gordon Robson, Sue-Koto: Japanese Swords of the 15th & 16th Centuries, volume one, (Albuquerque, 2006), p. 145, no. 53.