Hizen Tadayoshi

Profile

The first of his line, Tadayoshi is regarded as the founder of hizen-tō (肥前刀), the Saga school. Born in 1572, he was the son of a smith who served the Ryūzōji house. In 1596, sent by the Nabeshima, he entered the Kyoto workshop of Umetada Myōju (埋忠明寿) and trained there for about three years; back in Saga he worked for the Nabeshima house. His early signature was 肥前国忠吉 (Hizen no Kuni Tadayoshi), the five-character mei, alongside variants with 住人 (jūnin). In 1624 he received the title Musashi Daijō, took the name Tadahiro and signed 武蔵大掾藤原忠広 (Musashi Daijō Fujiwara Tadahiro); on blades ordered by the daimyō he sometimes left the title out, a form known as kenjō-mei (献上銘). He died in 1632. After trying several styles in his early work, he settled the features of the school: a fine, tight konuka-hada (小糠肌) and a suguha of fine nie with a ko-maru bōshi. His son, Ōmi Daijō Tadahiro, succeeded him, and Masahiro is counted among his pupils. A katana of 1630, owned by the Nabeshima Hōkōkai foundation, is a cultural property of Saga Prefecture.