Kashū Kagehira
A smith of Kanazawa, in Kaga, from the early Edo period; eldest son of the first Kanewaka, though he did not inherit the family name, and the author of few known works.
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Kagehira was the eldest son of the first Kanewaka, the smith of the Mino tradition whom the Maeda house brought to Kanazawa around 1605. Despite being the firstborn, the second generation of the Kanewaka name went to his younger brother Matasuke; two other brothers, Arihira and Kiyohira, also signed with names of their own.
He worked in Kanazawa from the 1620s and his dated works begin in 1628; the date of the last one differs between the sources. Few blades of his are known for so long a career, and it has been suggested, without proof, that he signed some with the name of his father or his brother. His signature carries the province of Kaga and the clan surname Fujiwara.