Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
Katana by Nagasone Okimasa, pupil and adopted son of Kotetsu, with a signed ubu tang and designated Jūyō Tōken at the 60th NBTHK session, according to the original seller.
Nagasone Okimasa worked in Edo, Musashi province, within the Kotetsu school, as pupil and successor of its master. The original seller places this blade around the Enpō era (1673–1681). It is a shinogi-zukuri with iori-mune, chūkissaki and 1.65 cm of sori over a nagasa of 71.2 cm. According to the original seller, the jigane is itame mixed with mokume, with thick ji-nie and plentiful chikei, and the hamon starts straight and continues in paired gunome with ashi, kinsuji and sunagashi; the photographs show that regular gunome above a straight yakidashi. The tang is ubu, with a kurijiri tip and a single mekugi-ana, and bears the signature 長曽祢興正 (Nagasone Okimasa). The original seller declares the NBTHK Jūyō Tōken paper (60th session, 2014), a shirasaya with a sayagaki by Honma Kunzan dated 1979, and a gold-foiled double habaki. The blade is published in the Kantō Hibishō, whose pages are included among the photographs.
Strong points
- NBTHK Jūyō Tōken designation (60th session), according to the original seller
- Ubu tang signed 長曽祢興正 (Nagasone Okimasa)
- Published in the Kantō Hibishō, with a sayagaki by Honma Kunzan
- Gunome hamon typical of the smith
Points to bear in mind
- Offered without a mounting (koshirae)
- The paper, the shirasaya and the sayagaki do not appear in the photographs
- The listing does not state the condition of the blade
Score
145 pointscurrent max. 255
-
Certificate
+140
NBTHK Jūyō paper +140
-
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
71.2 cm: within the usable range +10
-
Shirasaya
+5
With a storage shirasaya +5
-
Price
−15
Price: the more affordable, the more points −15
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
- 71.2 cm
- Sori
- 1.7 cm
- Tang
- Intact (ubu)
- Certificate
- NBTHK Jūyō
- Mounting
- No mounting
- Storage shirasaya
- Yes
- Smith
- Nagasone Okimasa
- Period
- Shintō (1596-1780)
- Dating
- Enpō era (1673–1681)
- Province
- Musashi
- Mekugi-ana
- 1
- Condition
- Condition not declared
- Signed
- Yes
- With an engraved date
- No
- Motohaba
- 3,1 cm
- Sakihaba
- 2,1 cm
- Motokasane
- 0,75 cm
- Sakikasane
- 0,55 cm