Kantei

NH-0455 Rank 75

Izumo Daijō Yoshitake

Shintō katana by Izumo Daijō Yoshitake of the Horikawa school, with NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken papers, shirasaya with a sayagaki by Kanzan and a complete koshirae with a papered tsuba.

Shintō (1596-1780)Early to mid Edo periodNBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon

Silhouette of the blade to scale, aligned at the machi

Photographs by the seller at origin.

Description

Katana signed by Izumo Daijō Yoshitake, a Horikawa school smith who, according to the original seller, was the son of Horikawa Kunitake of Kyoto and later moved to Edo, where he left a collaborative work with Hōjōji Masateru. The blade dates from the early to mid Edo period (shintō) and measures 71.5 cm in nagasa with 0.9 cm of sori: a restrained curve and a slightly extended kissaki. The original seller describes a ko-itame and ko-mokume jigane with fine chikei and jinie, and a ko-gunome midare hamon in nie with sunagashi and kinsuji and a broad, bright nioiguchi; the photographs show a lively irregular hamon along the whole blade. The nakago, with a single mekugi-ana, bears the signature 出雲大掾藤原吉武 and appears intact in the photographs. It comes with a shirasaya bearing a sayagaki by Kanzan (Shōwa 41, 1966) and a koshirae with a black lacquered saya, purple ito on the tsuka, gilt menuki and a brass Higo tsuba with waves, the latter with its own Hozon Tōsōgu paper. The blade holds NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken papers and a gilt double habaki.

Strong points

  • NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken papers for the blade
  • Full signature 出雲大掾藤原吉武 on a nakago that the photographs show intact
  • Shirasaya with a sayagaki by Kanzan (Shōwa 41, 1966)
  • Complete koshirae with a Higo tsuba holding Hozon Tōsōgu papers
  • Ko-gunome midare hamon in nie with sunagashi and kinsuji

Points to bear in mind

  • The original seller neither dates nor describes the koshirae; its paper covers only the tsuba.
  • The lacquered saya and the tsuka ito look recent in the photographs: probably relacquered and rewrapped.
  • The original seller does not explicitly state the state of polish or the absence of flaws.

Score breakdown

59.5/100

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 20 of 22 Tang intact according to the photographs
  3. Mounting 5 of 18 Mounting documented only in the photographs · with one fitting bearing an NBTHK paper · restored: relacquered or new saya and rewrapped ito
  4. Declared condition 11 of 20 Condition not declared
  5. Blade 8 of 8 71.5 cm: within the usable range
  6. Shirasaya 4 of 4 With a storage shirasaya
  7. Price 1.5 of 10 Rank 120 of 141 by price, from the most affordable to the dearest