Saitō Kiyondo

Profile

Saitō Kiyondo (斎藤清人) was born in 1827 in Shōnai, Dewa province. In 1852 he went to Edo and joined the workshop of Minamoto Kiyomaro (源清麿), becoming his last pupil. When his master died in 1854, Kiyondo settled his affairs, supported the widow and children, and forged the blades Kiyomaro had been commissioned and paid for in advance, so as to clear his debts. He kept working in Edo; in 1867, in Kyoto, he received the title Buzen no Kami (豊前守) after presenting a sword to the court. He then returned to Shōnai as a smith in the service of the domain and died in 1901. He signed Kiyondo, Fujiwara Kiyondo, Ushū Shōnai-jū Kiyondo or Buzen no Kami Kiyondo, and often dated his blades. His work closely follows Kiyomaro's: long, wide blades with shallow sori and an extended kissaki; dense ko-itame with ji-nie; gunome-midare with irregular ashi, sunagashi and kinsuji, as well as suguha; a bōshi with hakikake. The Chidō Museum in Tsuruoka holds a katana by him designated a cultural property of Yamagata prefecture.