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Criterion by criterion
The level of each row is the lowest of its data; anything inside it with another level is marked as such. Kanemitsu’s data come from his monograph.
| Criterion | Matsuba Kagemasa | Akamatsu Tarō Kanemitsu |
|---|---|---|
| Age | 67 | 46 or 47 (47, if he was born on 30 May 1979) |
| Licence | 1 February 1989: 37 years at the craft | around 2003: 23 years |
| Standing at the NBTHK | Mukansa in the catalogues from 2017 to 2023; has not exhibited since 2024; standing unconfirmed | Not mukansa; 高松宮記念賞 (Takamatsu-no-miya Kinenshō) in 2025 and awarded every year since 2022 |
| Other titles | Intangible cultural property of Miyazaki (2022) | None verified |
| The forge | Fire in October 2023; new forge in Hinokage (日之影); he himself speaks of physical wear | Hearth rebuilt in September 2026; stopped for a time |
| Style | Sōden-Bizen of Chōgi (長義): gunome-chōji; hitatsura | Bizen-den: chōji and jūka-chōji; interpretations of the Sanchōmō |
| Steel | Tamahagane; his own steel or old iron for the art jigane; tamahagane alone for use, according to a client | The family’s own steel (自家製鉄, jika seitetsu) in the shop work; not on record for competition |
| Own practice | Budōka since 1970: iai, kenjutsu, aikidō | Not on record that he practises; his profile for use comes from the budō shops |
| Public cutting test | None with the blade identified: he cuts bamboo himself in five videos, without it being known with which blade; a client reports 5,000 bamboos with a 2002 blade | A 2013 video from a dōjō: a roll of 4.5 tatami with a new blade the title says is his |
| Usual geometry | Long blades (70–108 cm), motohaba of about 3.5 cm, kasane of 0.64–0.8 cm | Competition tachi of 78.6–80.3 cm; his 2019 Sanchōmō, 37.5 mm wide and about 9.5 mm thick |
| Language | Fluent English, according to a report | Japanese |