Jirōtarō Naokatsu
次郎太郎直勝 (Jirōtarō Naokatsu)
First generation (shodai)
Edo swordsmith, pupil, son-in-law and successor of Taikei Naotane, active in the first half of the 19th century.
Profile
Jirōtarō Naokatsu (1805–1858) trained in Edo under Taikei Naotane (大慶直胤), who adopted him, gave him his daughter in marriage and made him heir to the workshop. He came from Kazusa and received from his master the name Jirō: his early blades are signed Kazusa Jirō Naokatsu (上総次郎直勝), later ones Shōji Jirōtarō Naokatsu (荘司次郎太郎直勝). Like Naotane, he was retained by the Akimoto house, lords of Yamagata and later of Tatebayashi. He worked in both traditions the school practised: Bizen, with chōji hamon and utsuri, and Sōshū, with abundant nie. He died in 1858, a year after his father-in-law; the forge carried on under his son, who signed Yamon Naokatsu (弥門直勝).
Swords available
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Jirōtarō Naokatsu
Shinshintō katana signed and dated by Jirōtarō Naokatsu in the 2nd month of Tenpō 10 (1839), with NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper and a complete koshirae. Jirōtarō Naokatsu, born in Yamagata, trained in Edo under Taikei Naotane, married his daughter and became his adopted heir; like his master, he served the Akimoto family. According to the original seller, he made many substitute works for Naotane in the latter's final years, and because he died early (1859) relatively few of his works survive. The blade has a nagasa of 70.3 cm and a sori of 1.88 cm, wide and thick, with fine koitame jigane and a gunome-midare hamon with a tight nioiguchi, abundant sunagashi and kinsuji; the bōshi is midare with a turn-back. The photographs show a nakago that appears ubu, with a single mekugi-ana, the signature “Jirōtarō Naokatsu” on the omote and the date, spring, 2nd month of Tenpō 10, on the ura. It comes with a one-piece copper habaki, a shirasaya and a koshirae with black lacquered saya, tsuka wrapped in black ito over same, an iron tsuba pierced with chrysanthemums and paulownia, shakudō fuchi, horn kashira and menuki of a figure with a dog. The NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper, dated 2 December Reiwa 1 (2019), is photographed.
59/100
€17,310
