NH-0114 Rank 109
Ōmi no Kami Hisamichi
Shintō katana from the Mishina school of Kyoto, signed Ōmi no Kami Minamoto Hisamichi with the kiku-mon engraved on the tang, with a declared NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken certificate and mounted in koshirae.
Silhouette of the blade to scale, aligned at the machi
Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
Description
Katana by Ōmi no Kami Hisamichi, a smith of the Mishina school settled in Kyoto (Yamashiro province) during the Edo period, within the shintō group. The blade has a nagasa of 70 cm and a sori of 1.55 cm, with a motohaba of 3.32 cm and a weight of 805 g according to the original seller's index. In the photographs the blade shows a notare hamon mixed with gunome in nie, an itame hada tending to masame along the shinogi, and a bōshi with a short return. The tang appears intact (ubu) with a single mekugi-ana, a kurijiri end and visible file marks; above the signature Ōmi no Kami Minamoto Hisamichi it bears an engraved chrysanthemum on a branch (eda-kiku-mon), the emblem of the Mishina family. There is no engraved date. The original seller declares an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken certificate and, in addition, an older Kōshu Tokubetsu Kichō Tōken paper from the retired system; neither appears in the photographs. The sword is mounted in a complete koshirae with a black-lacquered saya, a tsuka wrapped in black ito over same with gilt menuki, and a dark round tsuba; the seller neither describes nor dates the mounting, which is documented only by the photographs, where the saya and the ito look very clean.
Strong points
- Full signature Ōmi no Kami Minamoto Hisamichi with the Mishina school kiku-mon engraved on the tang
- Intact tang with a single mekugi-ana, as seen in the photographs
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken certificate declared by the original seller
- 70 cm blade with a notare and gunome hamon in nie, very well photographed
- Complete koshirae with a black-lacquered saya
Points to bear in mind
- The certificate does not appear in the photographs; it is declared by the original seller
- The mounting is neither described nor dated by the original seller; the saya and the ito look very clean, consistent with recent restoration
- The original seller does not declare the condition of the blade
Score breakdown
52.4/100
The score shares out 100 points: Signature and date 18 · Tang 22 · Mounting 18 · Declared condition 20 · Blade 8 · Shirasaya 4 · Price 10. It is computed from the record, not from an opinion. The mounting starts from what is known of its period, adds what vouches for it (its own NBTHK paper, a signed fitting, a crest) and subtracts what has been restored (saya, ito, same, habaki or sageo).
- Signature and date 10 of 18 Signed, with no engraved date
- Tang 20 of 22 Tang intact according to the photographs
- Mounting -5 of 18 Mounting documented only in the photographs · restored: relacquered or new saya and rewrapped ito
- Declared condition 11 of 20 Condition not declared
- Blade 8 of 8 70 cm: within the usable range
- Shirasaya 0 of 4 No shirasaya: one will have to be made
- Price 8.4 of 10 Rank 23 of 139 by price, from the most affordable to the dearest