Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
A long katana by Yamato Daijō Fujiwara Kuniyuki, a Bungo smith of the early Edo period, signed on the tang and certified NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon. Presented in shirasaya.
Katana by Yamato Daijō Fujiwara Kuniyuki, a smith of Bungo province active, according to the original seller, around the Kanbun era in the early Edo period. The blade has a nagasa of 76.4 cm and a sori of 1.2 cm: a slightly wide shape with shallow curvature and a short kissaki, typical of a time when straighter blades were favoured. The original seller describes a jigane of itame mixed with mokume, with masame flowing along the hamon and visible chikei, and a nie-based suguha hamon with komidare and koashi and a thick nioiguchi; the blade is declared healthy and in excellent condition. The photographs show the nakago with a single mekugi-ana, apparently intact, signed 大和大掾藤原国行 (Yamato Daijō Fujiwara Kuniyuki). It has a gold-plated double habaki with a geometric pattern. The NBTHK recognised it as Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken (特別保存刀剣, tokubetsu hozon tōken) in February of Reiwa 2 (2020); the origami appears in the photographs. The blade is kept in shirasaya, without koshirae.
Strong points
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōken paper (2020), photographed
- Signed 大和大掾藤原国行 (Yamato Daijō Fujiwara Kuniyuki)
- Long 76.4 cm blade, declared healthy by the original seller
- Apparently intact nakago with a single mekugi-ana
- Gold-plated double habaki
Points to bear in mind
- No koshirae: the blade is presented in shirasaya.
- Not dated; the attribution to around the Kanbun era is the original seller's.
Score
148.2 pointscurrent max. 255
-
Certificate
+50
NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper +50
-
Tang
+20
Tang intact according to the photographs +20
-
Declared condition
+30
Healthy according to the original seller +30
-
Signature and date
+15
Signed, with no engraved date +15
-
Mounting
−15
No mounting −15
-
Blade
+15
76.4 cm: long blade, 74 cm or more +15
-
Shirasaya
+5
With a storage shirasaya +5
-
Price
+28.2
Price: the more affordable, the more points +28.2
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
- 76.4 cm
- Sori
- 1.2 cm
- Tang
- Intact according to the photographs
- Certificate
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon
- Mounting
- No mounting
- Storage shirasaya
- Yes
- Smith
- Takada Kuniyuki
- Period
- Shintō (1596-1780)
- Dating
- Kanbun era (1661–1673)
- Province
- Bungo
- Mekugi-ana
- 1
- Condition
- Sound condition according to the seller at origin
- Signed
- Yes
- With an engraved date
- No
- Blade weight
- 895 g