Kantei
A bare tachi blade resting on a white cloth, in a dark room.

Rai school, Kyoto · end of the Kamakura and Nanbokuchō

Rai Kunimitsu (来国光)

The heir of Rai Kunitoshi, between the end of the Kamakura and the Nanbokuchō, with three National Treasures

Rai Kunimitsu (来国光, Rai Kunimitsu), son of Rai Kunitoshi according to the most widely accepted tradition, led the Rai school of Kyoto from the end of the Kamakura period to the middle of the Nanbokuchō. His dated works run from 1326 to 1351, and three of them are National Treasures.

Kakidai, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

1326-1351
Dated works
3
National Treasures
21 or 23
Important Cultural Properties
About 180
NBTHK Jūyō Tōken
On this page
  1. Quick profile
  2. In short

Quick profile

Name
Rai Kunimitsu; some blades attributed to a second generation add 山城国住 (Yamashiro no kuni-jū) or 左兵衛尉 (Sahyōe-no-jō) AT
Kanji and reading
来国光 (Rai Kunimitsu) HD
Period
From the end of the Kamakura period to the middle of the Nanbokuchō; first half of the 14th century HD
Province
Yamashiro (山城, Yamashiro), in Kyoto HD
School
Rai (来派, Rai-ha) HD
Master
His father, Rai Kunitoshi (来国俊, Rai Kunitoshi), according to the most widely accepted tradition AT
Generations
One or two: it is debated whether the works from 1345 to 1352 are by a second Kunimitsu AT
What is documented
Blades dated from 1326 to 1351; the only dated tachi, of 1327, in the Tokyo National Museum HD
The tradition
Born in 1264 and died in 1335, at the age of 72, according to the Kotō Meizukushi Taizen; Sesko believes it confuses the eras PC

In short

Kunimitsu took over the leadership of the school shortly after 1321, already as a fully trained master, as Markus Sesko deduces. His tachi are wider and showier than his father’s, with an elongated point, and herald the large blades of the Nanbokuchō; he also forged tantō of very varied shapes. The Tokyo and Kyūshū National Museums hold two of his three National Treasures, two tachi; the third is the tantō known as the “Uraku Rai Kunimitsu”.

Sections

  1. The heir of Kunitoshi Life and times His parentage, his dates, the second generation and the origin of the school.
  2. Kantei keys Work and style Sugata, jihada, hamon, bōshi, nakago and mei.
  3. National Treasures, meibutsu and shrines Famous works The designated works and the tantō with their own names.
  4. Bibliography and credits Sources The sources consulted and the image credits.