Hosokawa Masamori

Profile

Masamori belonged to the Hosokawa family of swordsmiths, who served the Matsudaira lords of the Tsuyama domain in Mimasaka and worked mostly in Edo. He was the son of Hosokawa Masayoshi (細川正義), a pupil of Suishinshi Masahide (水心子正秀), and succeeded him as smith to the domain, while his brother Tadayoshi (忠義) entered the service of the Sakura domain in Shimōsa. His working life runs from the Kōka era into the early Meiji years, with dated blades down to the Keiō era. Some signatures open with 作陽幕下士 (Sakuyō bakkashi), declaring him a retainer of Mimasaka; others record where the blade was forged. He kept to his father's Bizen-inspired manner, with chōji and gunome hamon, and is credited with particular care in carving hi (樋).