Kantei

NH-0398 Rank 121

Yamato no Kami Yoshimichi

Shintō katana signed by Yamato no Kami Yoshimichi of the Ōsaka Mishina school, with NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken papers and a complete koshirae with black saya.

Shintō (1596-1780)Kanbun era (1661–1673)SettsuNBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon

Silhouette of the blade to scale, aligned at the machi

Photographs by the seller at origin.

Description

Katana signed Yamato no Kami Yoshimichi (大和守吉道), a master of the Ōsaka Mishina school active in the Kanbun era; according to the original seller he was the second son of the first-generation Ōsaka Tanba no Kami Yoshimichi and was renowned for his chōji midare hamon. The blade measures 70.6 cm nagasa with 1.6 cm sori and has a medium kissaki; the photographs show a lively midare hamon rich in nie and an intact bōshi. The nakago, with a dark patina and its original end, bears the five-character signature on the omote and has two mekugi-ana; it is undated. The sword is mounted in a complete koshirae that the original seller describes without dating: fuchi-kashira with chrysanthemums on a nanako ground, matching menuki, a tsuba with a figure and a mouse he attributes to Ōkuninushi, and a black lacquered saya; the photographs show the black-wrapped tsuka, tsuba, sageo and lacquered saya. Papers: NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken certificate dated August 2025, legible in the photograph of the origami. The original seller warns of a couple of kitae-kizu at the tip of the blade.

Strong points

  • Full Yamato no Kami Yoshimichi signature on an intact nakago with dark patina
  • NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken certificate (2025), legible in the photographs
  • Lively midare hamon, characteristic of the Ōsaka Mishina school
  • Complete koshirae: chrysanthemum fuchi-kashira and menuki, figurative tsuba and black lacquered saya

Points to bear in mind

  • The original seller warns of a couple of kitae-kizu at the tip of the blade
  • The mounting is described but neither dated nor certified in its own right
  • The photographs show two mekugi-ana; the second appears to have been added for another mounting

Score breakdown

47.8/100

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 18 of 22 Tang intact according to the photographs, with 2 mekugi-ana
  3. Mounting 1 of 18 Mounting described piece by piece by the seller at origin
  4. Declared condition 8 of 20 Localised flaw declared
  5. Blade 8 of 8 70.6 cm: within the usable range
  6. Shirasaya 0 of 4 No shirasaya: one will have to be made
  7. Price 2.8 of 10 Rank 100 of 139 by price, from the most affordable to the dearest