Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
Katana by Hankei, a pioneer of Edo swordsmithing around the Kan'ei era, with a signed ubu tang, a double solid-gold habaki, shirasaya with sayagaki and NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken paper.
Katana signed 繁慶 (Hankei) on the tang, in the bold chisel work typical of this Musashi smith, one of the pioneers of Edo swordsmithing at the start of the period, around the Kan'ei era according to the original seller. The seller places him in the tradition of gunsmiths serving the early Tokugawa shōguns and ranks him as shintō saijō-saku. The blade is shinogi-zukuri with mitsu-mune, a wide mihaba, standard sori and chū-kissaki; it measures 69.6 cm in nagasa with 1.1 cm of sori. The seller describes itame with mokume and nagare, thick jinie and abundant chikei (the so-called hijiki-hada), and a notare hamon mixed with gunome and chōji, with yubashiri, tobiyaki, kinsuji, nie-suji and sunagashi; the photographs show an undulating notare and gunome hamon. The tang is ubu, with a sakiyagen tip, ō-sujikai yasurime and a single mekugi-ana, as the photographs confirm. The blade is kept in a shirasaya bearing an ink sayagaki signed 寒山 (Kanzan) and carries a double solid-gold habaki with a pierced aoi mon. NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken paper. Offered without mounts.
Strong points
- Signed 繁慶 (Hankei) on an ubu tang with a single mekugi-ana
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken paper
- Double solid-gold habaki with a pierced aoi mon
- Shirasaya with an ink sayagaki signed 寒山 (Kanzan)
- Notare and gunome hamon with intense nie activity, according to the original seller
Points to bear in mind
- Offered in shirasaya only, without koshirae.
- The listing does not state the condition of the blade or the date of its last polish.
- Undated: the attribution to around the Kan'ei era comes from the original seller.
Score
61.9 pointscurrent max. 255
-
Certificate
+50
NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper +50
-
Tang
+25
Tang intact according to the seller at origin +25
-
Declared condition
−20
The original seller says nothing about the condition −20
-
Signature and date
+15
Signed, with no engraved date +15
-
Mounting
−15
No mounting −15
-
Blade
+10
69.6 cm: within the usable range +10
-
Shirasaya
+5
With a storage shirasaya +5
-
Price
−8.1
Price: the more affordable, the more points −8.1
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
- 69.6 cm
- Sori
- 1.1 cm
- Tang
- Intact (ubu)
- Certificate
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon
- Mounting
- No mounting
- Storage shirasaya
- Yes
- Smith
- Noda Hankei
- Period
- Shintō (1596-1780)
- Dating
- Kan'ei era (1624–1644)
- Province
- Musashi
- Mekugi-ana
- 1
- Condition
- Condition not declared
- Signed
- Yes
- With an engraved date
- No
- Motohaba
- 3,0 cm
- Sakihaba
- 2,0 cm
- Motokasane
- 0,60 cm
- Sakikasane
- 0,53 cm
- Shinogi-kasane
- 0,62 cm
- Blade weight
- 682 g