Japanese Wakizashi by the contemporary master Ishida Kunihisa (國壽), signed "Kunihisa" and dated spring of Heisei 30 (2018) — modern (gendaitō) — a hira-zukuri blade with carving on both faces, in shirasaya

Signed-and-dated hira-zukuri wakizashi by Ishida Kunihisa of Gunma, pupil of the master Kawachi Kunihira · bō-hi with a soe-bi on the omote and a bō-hi on the ura · well-forged, tightly packed itame with clear ji-nie · a broad suguha with shallow notare and ko-gunome · brand-new, as-made

A supreme blade conveying the true essence of the contemporary master "Kunihisa." Its reverse date, Heisei 30, tsuchinoe-inu year, "yama-warau" (spring of 2018), sets into the signature the image of spring, when the rich nature of Shinshū bursts into bud — a hira-zukuri wakizashi in which a modern master's design sense shines. It shows the fresh, moist luster that only the newly forged steel of a modern sword possesses, and preserves exactly, in ideal condition, the flesh (niku) of the blade and the crisp carving — a bō-hi paired with a soe-bi on the front (omote) and a bō-hi on the back (ura) — just as the maker intended, letting you experience the smith's design beauty directly.

Workmanship and condition

The jigane is a superbly worked itame, finely and tightly packed, clothed in clear, fine ji-nie for a moist, lucid ground. The hamon is a broad suguha with a shallow notare, mixed with ko-gunome. As a brand-new work, fresh from the forge, it is in perfect, as-made condition, with no flaw or rust of any kind.

Form

A hira-zukuri (flat-sided, ridgeless) wakizashi with crisp carving on both faces — a bō-hi (straight groove) with a soe-bi (accompanying narrow groove) on the omote, and a single bō-hi on the ura. At a nagasa of 40.6 cm (about 1 shaku 3 sun 4 bu) with 0.5 cm of sori and a single peg-hole (mekugi-ana), it holds the maker's intended shape and proportions in their ideal state.

The smith — Ishida Kunihisa

Ishida Kunihisa (real name Ishida Tomohisa, born 1977) is a swordsmith of high renown. In 1995 he entered the school of Kawachi Kunihira, a holder of Nara Prefecture Intangible Cultural Property status, and in 2002 opened the "Kunihisa Tantō-ba" forge in Gunma. Rather than merely following tradition, he is celebrated for a high forging technique that studies a range of methods and old works and reconstructs them for the modern age — so versatile that he can make anything to order.

His encounter with the Japanese sword. The spark came at his grandfather's funeral, when he was seventeen: "Seeing the makura-gatana (pillow-sword) placed on the coffin, I became interested in Japanese swords. Then a television feature on swordsmiths moved me, and I resolved to become one." Around the same time, learning that the smith Kawachi Kunihira of Nara would take part in an NBTHK-sponsored competition held in Tokyo, he was introduced through an acquaintance of his father and became Kunihira's pupil at eighteen. After hard training, in 2001 he received approval from the Agency for Cultural Affairs to make art swords, and the following year became independent, opening the Kunihisa Tantō-ba in his home city of Tomioka.

Selected record:

• 2001 — Shinsaku Meitō-ten, Effort Prize / Newcomer Prize
• 2005 — 1st Omamori-gatana Exhibition, Fighting-Spirit Prize
• 2007 — Sano Art Museum, "Masters of the Japanese Sword" (exhibited / demonstration)
• 2012 — Bizen Osafune Sword Museum, "Evangelion and the Japanese Sword" exhibition
• 2017 — Tōken Ranbu Honmaru-haku, Mikazuki Munechika ubu-restoration project (kage-uchi displayed)
• 2018 — Shinsaku Meitō-ten, Excellence Prize
• 2019 — dedicatory demonstration at Yasukuni Shrine
• 2022 — "Masters and Masterworks of Reiwa" exhibition, selected

The mounting

The blade is preserved in a plain wood shirasaya (resting scabbard) with a gold habaki.

A pristine, freshly made hira-zukuri wakizashi by the contemporary master Ishida Kunihisa — its well-forged itame ground and bright suguha temper held in the maker's ideal form, with a bō-hi-and-soe-bi carving on the front and a bō-hi on the back, and its reverse inscribed with the poetry of a Shinshū spring. A first-rank modern work to appreciate and treasure exactly as it left the forge.

Specifications

• Type: Wakizashi (hira-zukuri); carving — bō-hi with soe-bi on the omote, bō-hi on the ura; modern (gendaitō)
• Signature (mei): front — Kunihisa tsukuru (國壽造); reverse — Heisei 30, tsuchinoe-inu year, "yama-warau" / spring (平成丗戊戌年山笑, 2018)
• Certification: none
• Smith: Ishida Kunihisa (real name Ishida Tomohisa, b. 1977) — Kunihisa Tantō-ba, Tomioka, Gunma; pupil of Kawachi Kunihira
• Jigane: well-forged, tightly packed itame with fine, clear ji-nie; moist and lucid
• Hamon: broad suguha with shallow notare, mixed with ko-gunome
• Blade length (nagasa): 40.6 cm / 15.98 in (about 1 shaku 3 sun 4 bu)
• Curvature (sori): 0.5 cm
• Width at base (motohaba): 31 mm
• Thickness at base (motokasane): 4.7 mm
• Peg-holes (mekugi-ana): 1
• Weight (blade only): 250 g
• Condition: brand-new, as-made; no flaws or rust
• Mounting: shirasaya (plain wood resting scabbard) with a gold habaki
• Certification: NBSK Authentic Japanese Sword Certificate
• Torokushō (Japanese registration) No.: Gunma 56001