Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
Shinshintō katana from Satsuma, signed by Hōki no Kami Masayuki and dated 1799, with an ubu tang, NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper, shirasaya with sayagaki and koshirae.
Katana by Hōki no Kami Masayuki (also read Masayoshi), one of the leading smiths of Satsuma in the shinshintō period. According to the original seller, he was an official smith to the Shimazu clan, received the title Hōki no Kami in 1789 and, together with Motohira, is regarded as one of the two summits of Satsuma swordmaking. The blade, in shinogi-zukuri with an iori-mune, has a nagasa of 70.9 cm and a sori of 1.5 cm. According to the original seller, the jihada is itame with areas of mokume, Satsuma-gane and abundant ji-nie, and the hamon is a notare-midare in nie-deki with inazuma and imozuru, a hallmark of the school; the photographs show the notare-midare along the blade. The tang is ubu, with two mekugi-ana, signed 伯耆守平朝臣正幸 (Hōki no Kami Taira no Ason Masayuki) and dated 寛政十一年未二月 (Kansei jūichi-nen hitsuji nigatsu), that is, 1799. It holds an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken paper issued in 2024. It comes with a shirasaya bearing an ink sayagaki and a koshirae with a black-lacquered saya, iron tsuba and a tsuka with same and green wrapping.
Strong points
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken paper.
- Signed and dated 1799, with an ubu tang and two mekugi-ana.
- Work of one of the two great Satsuma smiths of the shinshintō period, according to the original seller.
- Notare-midare hamon in nie-deki with imozuru, a Satsuma hallmark, according to the original seller.
- Supplied with a shirasaya bearing a sayagaki and a black-lacquered koshirae.
Points to bear in mind
- The original seller does not state the condition of the blade or its polish.
- The koshirae is neither dated nor described by the original seller; in the photographs the wrapping and the saya lacquer look recent.
- The tsuba bears an inscription that cannot be read with confidence in the photographs and that the original seller does not declare.
Score
97.8 pointscurrent max. 255
-
Certificate
+50
NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper +50
-
Tang
+25
Tang intact according to the seller at origin, with 2 mekugi-ana +25
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Declared condition
−20
The original seller says nothing about the condition −20
-
Signature and date
+25
Signed and with an engraved date +25
-
Mounting
−15
Mounting the original seller says nothing about 0 · relacquered saya −10 · rewrapped ito −5
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Blade
+10
70.9 cm: within the usable range +10
-
Shirasaya
+5
With a storage shirasaya +5
-
Price
+17.8
Price: the more affordable, the more points +17.8
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
- 70.9 cm
- Sori
- 1.5 cm
- Tang
- Intact (ubu)
- Certificate
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon
- Mounting
- Mounting documented only in the photographs
- Storage shirasaya
- Yes
- Smith
- Ijichi Masayuki
- Period
- Shinshintō (1781-1876)
- Dating
- 2nd month of Kansei 11 (1799)
- Province
- Satsuma
- Mekugi-ana
- 2
- Condition
- Condition not declared
- Signed
- Yes
- With an engraved date
- Yes
- Motohaba
- 3 cm
- Sakihaba
- 2,1 cm
- Motokasane
- 0,56 cm
A new mounting or a polish for your blade? Custom koshirae · Polishing