Kantei

Chōshū Morihide

盛秀 (Morihide)

Swordsmith of Nagato, in Chōshū, at the end of the Edo period, known from two signed katana dated 1863 and 1866.

Composite on a black background: a katana seen from both sides with carvings at the base, two large views of the point with an undulating temper, the signature and the date on the tang, and the wooden scabbard.
Photo: dealer in Japan

Profile

Chōshū Morihide (盛秀) is a swordsmith of Nagato, the western half of Chōshū, from the last years of the Edo period. What is known of him comes from two of his katana: one signed Nagato no Kuni Morihide (長門国盛秀) and dated to a year of the fire tiger, which in that period is 1866, and another signed Morihide saku (盛秀作) and dated to the second month of 1863, with carvings at the base: a bonji and a figure among flames on one side and a sword with a vajra hilt on the other. Both have an undulating hamon. His life, school and teacher are not recorded in the sources consulted.

Monograph

Chōshū Morihide (盛秀) His quick profile and the essentials. Read the monograph

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