Kantei

NH-0376 Rank 134

Moritsugu

Kotō katana signed Bishū Nakaji jū Moritsugu saku, Ko-Aoe school of Bitchū, NBTHK Jūyō Tōken (16th session), with shirasaya bearing a sayagaki by Hon'ami Kōson and koshirae.

Kotō (up to 1596)Shōkei era (1332–1334)BitchuNBTHK Jūyō

Silhouette of the blade to scale, aligned at the machi

Photographs by the seller at origin.

Description

Katana signed "Bishū Nakaji jū Moritsugu saku", which the original seller attributes to the Ko-Aoe school of Bitchū province and places in the late Kamakura period. The blade measures 71.0 cm nagasa with 2.7 cm sori and a deep curve; the original seller describes a ko-itame with ji-nie and visible utsuri, and a nie-based ko-gunome-midare hamon with a soft nioikuchi, kinsuji and sunagashi, which the hamon photographs show. The tang is suriage, as the certificate itself records, with three mekugi-ana and the long signature preserved in tachi-mei near the tip; the photographs confirm this. The blade was designated Jūyō Tōken by the NBTHK at the 16th session (1967), and the origami with its number is legible in the photographs, together with the zufu page. It comes with a shirasaya bearing a sayagaki by Hon'ami Kōson dated 1954 and a koshirae with black lacquered saya, openwork iron tsuba with chrysanthemum and flowing water, shibuichi fuchi, horn kashira and dragon menuki, which the seller describes without dating. Gold-covered double habaki.

Strong points

  • NBTHK Jūyō Tōken, 16th session (1967), with the origami legible in the photographs
  • Long tachi-mei signature of Moritsugu, Ko-Aoe school of Bitchū, late Kamakura kotō work
  • Shirasaya with a 1954 sayagaki by Hon'ami Kōson
  • Complete koshirae with openwork iron tsuba, shibuichi fuchi and dragon menuki
  • Clear utsuri and nie-based hamon with kinsuji and sunagashi, according to the original seller

Points to bear in mind

  • Suriage (shortened) tang, with the signature preserved
  • The original seller describes the mounting but does not date it
  • The original listing makes no statement about the blade's condition
  • The certificate records the piece as a tachi and notes that the smith's exact lineage remains to be clarified

Score breakdown

37.3/100

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 3 of 22 Shortened tang, with 3 mekugi-ana
  3. Mounting 1 of 18 Mounting described piece by piece by the seller at origin
  4. Declared condition 11 of 20 Condition not declared
  5. Blade 8 of 8 71 cm: within the usable range
  6. Shirasaya 4 of 4 With a storage shirasaya
  7. Price 0.3 of 10 Rank 132 of 136 by price, from the most affordable to the dearest