Kantei

NH-0290 Rank 64

Omi no Kami Minamoto Hisamichi

（菊紋）近江守源久道

Kyoto shintō katana signed with the kikumon by Ōmi no Kami Minamoto Hisamichi, with ubu nakago, Tokubetsu Hozon paper and a koshirae with tiger-and-bamboo fittings.

Shintō (1596-1780)Edo period, shintō (17th century)Yamashiro (Kioto)NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon

Silhouette of the blade to scale, aligned at the machi

Photographs by the seller at origin.

Description

Ōmi no Kami Hisamichi, first generation according to the original seller, studied under the second-generation Iga no Kami Kinmichi and is counted among the five great Kyoto smiths of the Mishina school; the court allowed him to engrave the chrysanthemum on the tang. The blade measures 71.8 cm in nagasa with 1.1 cm of sori, a motohaba of 3.2 cm and a sakihaba of 2.1 cm. The original seller describes a tight ko-itame with abundant ji-nie and chikei, a gunome midare hamon with long ashi, thick nie and kinsuji, and a straight bōshi with a small turn-back. The photographs show an ubu nakago with a single mekugi-ana, the kikumon and the signature "Ōmi no Kami Minamoto Hisamichi" on the omote. The blade comes with a double silver-foiled habaki and a complete koshirae: black lacquered saya, tsuka with green ito over same, and tsuba, fuchi and kashira engraved with a tiger, bamboo and water, the tsuba and fuchi signed Sōmin. The NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon origami is dated the 27th day of the 8th month of Reiwa 3 (2021).

Strong points

  • Work by one of the five great Kyoto smiths, with the kikumon on the tang
  • Ubu nakago with a single mekugi-ana, declared and visible in the photographs
  • NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper (2021) photographed
  • Blade declared flawless by the original seller
  • Complete koshirae with matching tiger-and-bamboo fittings

Points to bear in mind

  • The koshirae is neither described nor dated by the original seller; the saya, glossy and unmarked, appears relacquered or new
  • The Sōmin signature on the fittings is among the most imitated and is not verified
  • The blade carries no engraved date

Score breakdown

60.8/100

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 22 of 22 Tang intact according to the seller at origin
  3. Mounting 2 of 18 Mounting documented only in the photographs · with a signed fitting · restored: relacquered or new saya
  4. Declared condition 11 of 20 Condition not declared
  5. Blade 8 of 8 71.8 cm: within the usable range
  6. Shirasaya 4 of 4 With a storage shirasaya
  7. Price 3.8 of 10 Rank 87 of 139 by price, from the most affordable to the dearest