Ichimonji Sukemune
助宗 (Sukemune)
A Fukuoka Ichimonji smith of the early Kamakura period, son of Norimune and rotating smith of the retired emperor Go-Toba; he is known as Ō-Ichimonji.
Profile
Sukemune was the son of Norimune, the founder of Fukuoka Ichimonji, and in 1208 he served as a rotating smith of the retired emperor Go-Toba. He bore the title Shuri no Suke and is known as Ō-Ichimonji. Already in the Middle Ages forgeries of his blades circulated with a chrysanthemum engraved on the tang and deliberately polished down to look old, according to a Muromachi-period sword book. A tradition from Shimada, in Suruga, makes him the ancestor of its smiths; it is a local tradition, not a documented fact.
Monograph
Ichimonji Sukemune (助宗)
One of Go-Toba’s rotating smiths, between documented fact and tradition, with the level of evidence of each fact.
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Notable works
- Tachi signed Sukemune, used by Uesugi Kagekatsu, with a leather-wrapped tachi mounting; important cultural property, at the Matsugasaki shrine in Yonezawa.