Miyoshi Nagamichi
三善長道 (Miyoshi Nagamichi)
Lineage: the signature does not state the generation
An Aizu lineage of smiths founded by Miyoshi Nagamichi (1633-1685), who was called the Kotetsu of Aizu; the name was handed down until the Meiji period.
Profile
The first Nagamichi was born in Aizu in 1633 and, after his father's death, learned from his uncle Nagatoshi. At first he signed Michinaga; in 1658, on receiving the title Mutsu Daijō, he changed the name to Nagamichi, because the earlier one matched that of the regent Fujiwara no Michinaga. He is said to have studied cutting in Edo with the tester Yamano Kanjūrō Hisahide. His work resembles that of Nagasone Kotetsu: little curvature, ko-itame with masame and gunome midare with sunagashi, and the Yamada cutting list puts him in the highest grade. He died in 1685 and the name stayed in his family until Meiji.
Notable works
- Katana signed Mutsu Daijō Miyoshi Nagamichi that Matsudaira Katamori, lord of Aizu, gave to Kondō Isami.