{"product_id":"authentic-koto-era-tanto-for-sale-yoshisuke-nbthk-kicho-certificate-tozando","title":"Authentic Koto Era Tanto for Sale - Yoshisuke, NBTHK Kicho Certificate | Tozando","description":"\u003ch2\u003eAntique Japanese Tantō, signed Yoshisuke (orikaeshi-mei)\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eLate Muromachi period · Shimada school of Suruga · NBTHK Kichō Tōken\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAccompanied by an NBTHK Kichō Tōken (\"Precious Sword\") certificate.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis compact tantō bears the signature \u003cem\u003eYoshisuke\u003c\/em\u003e (義助), the name of the founding line of the \u003cstrong\u003eShimada school\u003c\/strong\u003e (Shimada-ha), which worked in Shimada in Suruga province (present-day Shimada City, Shizuoka) from the mid-Muromachi period into the mid-Edo period. It is accompanied by a \u003cstrong\u003eKichō Tōken\u003c\/strong\u003e (\"Precious Sword\") certificate issued by the \u003cstrong\u003eNBTHK\u003c\/strong\u003e (Nihon Bijutsu Tōken Hozon Kyōkai, the Society for the Preservation of Japanese Art Swords), papering the blade as a genuine work worthy of preservation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eThe smith: Yoshisuke and the Shimada school\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYoshisuke is regarded as the founder and signature smith of the Shimada tradition, a name carried across several generations. By tradition the name was bestowed by the Imagawa, the great daimyō house that governed Suruga: the smith received one character — \u003cem\u003eyoshi\u003c\/em\u003e (義) — from his patron's name, and signed \u003cem\u003eYoshisuke\u003c\/em\u003e thereafter. The school enjoyed the patronage of some of the most powerful warlords of the Warring States era, including the Imagawa, Takeda, Hōjō and Yūki, and Yoshisuke is celebrated above all as the maker of the \u003cstrong\u003eOtegine\u003c\/strong\u003e, one of the \"Three Great Spears of Japan.\" The Shimada smiths were prized makers of tantō, short wakizashi and spears in particular.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eStylistically, Shimada work is built on the Mino tradition but is strongly colored by the \u003cstrong\u003eSōshū (Sagami) tradition\u003c\/strong\u003e — the lively, energetic style of hardening for which the school is most loved — with touches of Bizen as well. It is this pronounced Sōshū character that gives a blade like this its appeal.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWorkmanship and condition\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eForged in \u003cem\u003ehira-zukuri\u003c\/em\u003e with no curvature (\u003cem\u003emu-sori\u003c\/em\u003e) and a notably thick \u003cem\u003ekasane\u003c\/em\u003e, the blade has a solid, purposeful feel in the hand despite its small size. The \u003cem\u003ejigane\u003c\/em\u003e is a tightly forged \u003cem\u003eitame\u003c\/em\u003e grain with areas of \u003cem\u003emokume\u003c\/em\u003e mixed in, well covered in \u003cem\u003eji-nie\u003c\/em\u003e — the fine, glittering crystalline activity over the surface of the steel that is a hallmark of Sōshū-influenced work. The \u003cem\u003ehamon\u003c\/em\u003e is an undulating pattern with a soft, misty \u003cem\u003enioiguchi\u003c\/em\u003e, mixed with bold, large \u003cem\u003egunome\u003c\/em\u003e, and enlivened by activity within the hardened edge — rounded \u003cem\u003etama\u003c\/em\u003e (isolated bright spots) and \u003cem\u003eashi\u003c\/em\u003e (feet of hardening reaching toward the cutting edge). The blade is in sound, healthy condition (\u003cem\u003ekenzen\u003c\/em\u003e) — free of fatal flaws and entirely suitable for appreciation as it is.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eA preserved signature: the rarity of orikaeshi-mei\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe signature survives in the form of an \u003cem\u003eorikaeshi-mei\u003c\/em\u003e — a \"folded-back signature.\" When an older, longer blade is shortened (\u003cem\u003esuriage\u003c\/em\u003e) to alter its length or balance, the lower portion of the tang carrying the smith's name would normally be cut away and lost forever, leaving the blade unsigned (\u003cem\u003emumei\u003c\/em\u003e). The orikaeshi-mei is the rarer and more painstaking alternative: the signed strip of the original tang is thinned and folded back onto the shortened nakago so that the maker's name is carried over onto the reshaped blade.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is an uncommon feature, and a telling one. A craftsman only goes to this trouble for a blade considered worth preserving by name — so the orikaeshi-mei is itself evidence of the regard in which this tantō was held. Together with the two \u003cem\u003emekugi-ana\u003c\/em\u003e, it records a working life long enough to see the blade reshaped and re-fitted, while its identity as a \u003cem\u003eYoshisuke\u003c\/em\u003e was deliberately kept intact.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe blade is housed in a plain wood \u003cem\u003eshirasaya\u003c\/em\u003e, the traditional resting mount that protects the steel between viewings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA characterful, hand-sized antique blade carrying a preserved signature, an NBTHK certificate, and the lively Sōshū-influenced workmanship of the Shimada school — an approachable yet historically rich entry point for the collector drawn to Muromachi-period nihontō.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eSpecifications\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eType:\u003c\/strong\u003e Tantō (short blade)\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSignature (mei):\u003c\/strong\u003e Yoshisuke (義助), orikaeshi-mei (folded-back signature)\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSchool:\u003c\/strong\u003e Shimada school (Shimada-ha), Suruga province\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePeriod:\u003c\/strong\u003e Late Muromachi, 16th c.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTradition (den):\u003c\/strong\u003e Sōshū-influenced (Mino-based)\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eJigane:\u003c\/strong\u003e tightly forged itame with mokume, abundant ji-nie\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eHamon:\u003c\/strong\u003e undulating midare with large gunome, soft misty nioiguchi, with tama and ashi activity\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBlade length (nagasa):\u003c\/strong\u003e 16.9 cm \/ 6.65 in\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCurvature (sori):\u003c\/strong\u003e none (mu-sori)\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eWidth at base (motohaba):\u003c\/strong\u003e 17.7 mm\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eThickness at base (motokasane):\u003c\/strong\u003e 5.7 mm\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eWeight (blade only):\u003c\/strong\u003e 70 g\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eConstruction:\u003c\/strong\u003e hira-zukuri\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMekugi-ana:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMounting:\u003c\/strong\u003e shirasaya\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCertification:\u003c\/strong\u003e NBTHK Kichō Tōken (Precious Sword)\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTorokushō (Japanese registration) No.:\u003c\/strong\u003e Saitama 84266\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"TOZANDO KATANA SHOP","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53427855622507,"sku":"611-ATQSWD-Saitama84266","price":300000.0,"currency_code":"JPY","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0491\/2178\/8069\/files\/saitama84266_yoshisuke_1.jpg?v=1782462177","url":"https:\/\/japanesesword.net\/products\/authentic-koto-era-tanto-for-sale-yoshisuke-nbthk-kicho-certificate-tozando","provider":"Tozando Katana Shop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}