Kantei

NH-0225 Rank 126

Yamato no Kami Antei

Shintō katana by Yamato no Kami Antei of Musashi, with the cutting-test inscription “futatsu-dō” on the tang, Tokubetsu Hozon paper and a full koshirae in addition to a shirasaya.

Shintō (1596-1780)Keian era (1648–1652)MusashiNBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon

Silhouette of the blade to scale, aligned at the machi

Photographs by the seller at origin.

Description

Yamato no Kami Antei worked in Edo, Musashi province, in the mid-seventeenth century. The original seller counts him among the ō-wazamono, the smiths most renowned for cutting ability, with numerous cutting-test inscriptions, and places this blade in Keian 1648. It measures 71.2 cm in nagasa with 1.2 cm of sori, a motohaba of 3.3 cm and a sakihaba of 2.3 cm; the photographs show a notare hamon with gunome in nioi and a chū kissaki. The tang bears the signature “Yamato no Kami Antei” on the omote and the cutting-test inscription “futatsu-dō” (two bodies) on the ura, with slanting yasurime and two mekugi-ana. The blade comes with a complete koshirae: a round iron tsuba with a woven-pattern relief, matching iron fuchi-kashira, gilt figural menuki, a tsuka with dark ito over same, a black-lacquered saya and a copper habaki with diagonal lines; a shirasaya is also included. The NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper, no. 1022970, dated Reiwa 6 (2024), appears in the photographs.

Strong points

  • Cutting-test inscription “futatsu-dō” (two bodies) on the ura of the tang
  • NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper (2024), visible in the photographs
  • Complete koshirae with matching iron fittings, plus a shirasaya
  • Signed by Yamato no Kami Antei, shintō smith of Edo

Points to bear in mind

  • The original seller does not state the condition of the blade
  • The tang has two mekugi-ana; the photographs cannot rule out that the machi has been moved
  • The mounting is neither described nor dated by the seller; the saya shows wear at the kojiri

Score breakdown

46.1/100

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).

  1. Signature and date 10 of 18 Signed, with no engraved date
  2. Tang 18 of 22 Tang intact according to the photographs, with 2 mekugi-ana
  3. Mounting -2 of 18 Mounting documented only in the photographs
  4. Declared condition 11 of 20 Condition not declared
  5. Blade 8 of 8 71.2 cm: within the usable range
  6. Shirasaya 0 of 4 No shirasaya: one will have to be made
  7. Price 1.1 of 10 Rank 124 of 139 by price, from the most affordable to the dearest