Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
Katana by Kanetsune of Seki, Mino province, around the Tenbun era (1532–1555), signed on an ubu tang, with a gunome hamon and declared Tokubetsu Hozon papers; in shirasaya.
Katana signed by Kanetsune, a Seki smith of Mino province active around the Tenbun era (1532–1555), in the late Muromachi period. The original seller traces his tradition back to the Senjuin school of Yamato and counts him, with Magoroku Kanemoto and Izumi no Kami Kanesada, among the three great masters of Seki. The blade has a nagasa of 71.99 cm, a sori of 2.18 cm and a motohaba of 3.03 cm; according to the seller it is longer and wider than is usual for this smith, with a chūkissaki. The photographs show a gunome hamon of irregular height; the seller describes an itame jigane with nagare, Seki utsuri, the pointed togariba typical of Mino, kinsuji and sunagashi around the monouchi, and a midare-komi bōshi with a short turn-back. The tang is ubu, with a single mekugi-ana and takanoha file marks according to the listing, and bears the signature 濃州関住兼常 (Nōshū Seki-jū Kanetsune). It comes in shirasaya with a gold-foiled double habaki, without mountings. The seller declares NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon papers and a 1964 Nihon Tōken Hozon Kai certificate rated «Yūshūsaku»; neither appears in the photographs.
Strong points
- Signature 濃州関住兼常 (Nōshū Seki-jū Kanetsune) on an ubu tang with a single mekugi-ana
- 71.99 cm blade, longer than usual for the smith according to the original seller
- Mino-style gunome hamon, visible in the photographs
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon papers, declared by the original seller
- Gold-foiled double habaki
Points to bear in mind
- No mountings (koshirae): the blade comes only in shirasaya, declared in the listing but not shown in the photographs.
- The listing does not state the condition of the blade.
- The declared papers do not appear in the photographs.
Score
88.2 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
72 cm: within the usable range +10
-
Shirasaya
+5
With a storage shirasaya +5
-
Price
+18.2
Price: the more affordable, the more points +18.2
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
- 72 cm
- Sori
- 2.2 cm
- Tang
- Intact (ubu)
- Certificate
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon
- Mounting
- No mounting
- Storage shirasaya
- Yes
- Smith
- Kanetsune
- Period
- Kotō (up to 1596)
- Dating
- Around the Tenbun era (1532–1555)
- Province
- Mino
- Mekugi-ana
- 1
- Condition
- Condition not declared
- Signed
- Yes
- With an engraved date
- No
- Motohaba
- 3,03 cm
- Sakihaba
- 1,88 cm
- Motokasane
- 0,58 cm
- Shinogi-kasane
- 0,64 cm