Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
A robust katana by Nanki Shigekuni from around the Kan'ei era, signed and with NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken papers; a 76.6 cm shortened blade kept in shirasaya.
Nanki Shigekuni, heir to the Yamato tradition of the Tegai school, served Tokugawa Ieyasu at Sunpu and moved to Kii with Tokugawa Yorinobu around the Genna era; he ranks among the great smiths of the shintō period. This katana, from around Kan'ei, is a wide, thick blade (3.2 cm motohaba, 948 g) in shinogi-zukuri with iori-mune and a slightly extended chū-kissaki. According to the original seller, the jigane is ko-mokume mixed with mokume, with dense ji-nie and chikei, and the hamon a suguha with hotsure, kuichigai, ashi, yō, kinsuji and sunagashi; the photographs show the grain of the ji in the close-ups. The tang is shortened (suriage), with a kiri tip, katte-sagari yasurime and two mekugi-ana, and bears the signature 於南紀重国造之 (Nanki nite Shigekuni kore o tsukuru). Two-piece gilt habaki. Kept in shirasaya, without mounts. NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken papers issued in 1990.
Strong points
- Signed work by Nanki Shigekuni, master of the Yamato tradition in Kii
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken papers
- Wide, thick blade weighing nearly one kilogram (948 g)
- According to the original seller, a healthy blade with good niku
- Two-piece gilt habaki and shirasaya
Points to bear in mind
- Shortened tang (suriage); according to the original seller, the blade originally exceeded 81 cm
- No mounts: the blade comes in shirasaya only
- The hamon activity is taken from the original seller's description; the photographs do not allow it to be verified
Score
77.6 pointscurrent max. 255
-
Certificate
+50
NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper +50
-
Tang
−20
Shortened tang (suriage) −20
-
Declared condition
+30
Healthy according to the original seller +30
-
Signature and date
+15
Signed, with no engraved date +15
-
Mounting
−15
No mounting −15
-
Blade
+15
76.6 cm: long blade, 74 cm or more +15
-
Shirasaya
+5
With a storage shirasaya +5
-
Price
−2.4
Price: the more affordable, the more points −2.4
The score adds and subtracts points for each feature of the piece and has no ceiling: the highest in the catalogue today is 255. 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).
Measurements
- Nagasa
- 76.6 cm
- Sori
- 1.8 cm
- Tang
- Shortened tang (suriage)
- Certificate
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon
- Mounting
- No mounting
- Storage shirasaya
- Yes
- Smith
- Nanki Shigekuni
- Period
- Shintō (1596-1780)
- Dating
- Kan'ei era (1624–1644)
- Province
- Kii
- Mekugi-ana
- 2
- Condition
- Sound condition according to the seller at origin
- Signed
- Yes
- With an engraved date
- No
- Motohaba
- 3,2 cm
- Sakihaba
- 2,1 cm
- Motokasane
- 0,65 cm
- Sakikasane
- 0,59 cm
- Shinogi-kasane
- 0,81 cm
- Blade weight
- 948 g