Kantei

NH-0460 Rank 123

Tango-no-kami Kanemichi, second generation

Shintō katana from Settsu (Osaka), signed Tango-no-kami Kanemichi, with an ubu tang, NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper, shirasaya and a koshirae with a black lacquered saya.

Shintō (1596-1780)Tenna era (1681–1684)SettsuNBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon

Silhouette of the blade to scale, aligned at the machi

Photographs by the seller at origin.

Description

According to the original seller, this is the work of the second-generation Tango-no-kami Kanemichi, son of the first, of the Mishina family, with dated works from around Genroku and Hōei; he is told apart from his father because he does not cut the character "ichi" or the chrysanthemum on the tang. The blade, 69.3 cm long with 2.1 cm of sori, is shinogi-zukuri with an iori-mune, a wide mihaba and a slightly extended chū-kissaki. The seller describes a fine ko-itame with ji-nie and chikei, and a hamon that starts in suguha and continues in grouped gunome mixed with notare, in tōran style, with thick ashi and deep nie-nioi; the bōshi runs straight with a round turn-back. The photographs show a clean polish and the full hamon on both sides. The tang is ubu, with keshō-sujikai yasurime, a single mekugi-ana and the signature 丹後守兼道. It comes with a 2024 NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken origami, the shirasaya, a gold-foiled two-piece habaki and an uchigatana koshirae: black roiro-lacquered saya, pierced iron tsuba with warriors beneath a pine and a gilt rim, fuchi with water plants and a dragonfly, and a tsuka in black ito over full-wrap same.

Strong points

  • NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken paper (2024)
  • Signed ubu tang with a single mekugi-ana
  • Tōran-style gunome hamon, typical of Osaka shintō
  • Presented with shirasaya and a complete koshirae
  • Gold-foiled two-piece habaki

Points to bear in mind

  • The original seller does not state the condition of the blade; the photographs show no flaws, but they are no substitute for such a statement.
  • The koshirae is neither dated nor described piece by piece; the mirror-finish saya and the clean, tight ito indicate they have been redone.
  • The paper identifies the smith without specifying the generation; the attribution to the second is the original seller's.

Score breakdown

52/100

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 22 of 22 Tang intact according to the seller at origin
  3. Mounting -5 of 18 Mounting documented only in the photographs · restored: relacquered or new saya and rewrapped ito
  4. Declared condition 11 of 20 Condition not declared
  5. Blade 8 of 8 69.3 cm: within the usable range
  6. Shirasaya 4 of 4 With a storage shirasaya
  7. Price 2 of 10 Rank 121 of 151 by price, from the most affordable to the dearest