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Swordsmith of Bizen Osafune (Okayama) · his own tamahagane

Yamamoto Sukenaga (山本祐永)

A swordsmith of Bizen Osafune (Okayama) who smelts his own steel and works in the Bizen-den and the Sōshū-den: his life, his work and what is missing

Yamamoto Sukenaga (山本祐永) was born in Fukuoka in 1956, became an apprentice at the age of 30 and since 2003 has forged in Bizen Osafune (備前長船, Bizen Osafune), in Okayama prefecture, at the 備前長船日本刀傳習所 (Bizen Osafune nihontō denshūjo). He makes his own steel in a small tatara and works in the Bizen-den, the Sōshū-den and the Sōden-Bizen. This short monograph gathers what can be told about him; almost all of it is told by him.

Photo: the smith himself

1956
Born in Fukuoka
1986
Becomes an apprentice, at 30
2003
Forging in Bizen Osafune (Okayama), since
His own tamahagane
His steel comes from his own tatara
On this page
  1. Quick profile
  2. In short

Quick profile

Swordsmith’s name
祐永 (Sukenaga); formerly 國典 (Kuninori) AT
Full name
山本祐永 (Yamamoto Sukenaga) AT
Birth
6 November 1956, in Sawara (Fukuoka) AT
Where he forges
Bizen Osafune, in Setouchi (瀬戸内市, Setouchi-shi), Okayama prefecture, since 2003 AT
Master
He does not name him; he calls him 親方 (oyakata, “the master”) PC
School or tradition
Bizen-den (備前伝, Bizen-den), Sōshū-den (相州伝, Sōshū-den) and Sōden-Bizen (相伝備前, Sōden-Bizen) AT
Licence
No year; in 2021 he said he had held it for about 30 years AT
Rank
Not listed as mukansa or as a prize-winner in the NBTHK catalogues and lists from 2021 to 2026 HD

In short

What we know. He was born in Fukuoka in 1956 and graduated from Fukuoka University; in 1986, at 30, he became an apprentice, and in 2003 he bought a workshop in Bizen Osafune, where he opened the Denshūjo with another smith. Today Ueda Sukesada (上田祐定, Ueda Sukesada) and he work there. He extracts his own steel from iron sand in a small tatara.

How we know it. He tells almost all of it himself. The NBTHK lists we have been able to consult do not name him, and we have found no press, museum or reference work that speaks of him.

What we do not know. Who his master was, the year of his licence, whether he has ever exhibited in a competition and what his blades are like: there is no description of the steel, the hardening or the shape, and no catalogued works of his.

Sections

  1. From Fukuoka to Bizen Osafune Life and forging The apprenticeship at 30, the Bizen Osafune Denshūjo and his tatara, year by year.
  2. His own steel Work and style His steel, his traditions and his goals, and his work in pictures.
  3. No trace in the lists Prizes What the NBTHK lists say, and what they do not.
  4. Bibliography Sources The sources consulted and the image credits.