A Nidai Masahiro Katana (肥前国河内守藤原正広)

Nidai (second generation) Masahiro is the talented son of Shodai Sadenjiro Masahiro. Born in 1627, he worked under the patronage of the Nabeshima Lord Katsushige in Hizen province, mastering the distinctive forging tradition his father had established. He originally used the name Masanaga, but in 1661, upon being bestowed the prestigious court title of Kawachi no Kami, he began signing under the proud name of Masahiro. A remarkable lineage followed – a full ten generations of Masahiro-line smiths carried the tradition through to the very end of the Edo period.

The pronounced, elegant curvature of this katana places its making in the later years of his career, during the Genroku era. The blade is exquisitely forged in classic konuka-hada – the fine, rice-bran textured jihada that became the hallmark of Hizen school work – beginning as ko-mokume at the base and developing into the signature Hizen grain along the body. The hamon is a gorgeous gunome midare that radiates energy from the steel, punctuated by an unusually long and powerful line of kinsuji that adds exceptional dynamism. Strong brush strokes of sunagashi complete the picture. The boshi turns in a classic ko-maru with slight return. The nakago is ubu, signed in tachi-mei – a characteristic shared with his father and the majority of Hizen katana – chiselled on the side of the tang that faces away from the samurai when worn cutting-edge down. 2nd generation Masahiro died at the age of 73 on August 6th, 1700.

The Edo period koshirae is a study in martial elegance. The tsuba – a large polished iron guard of the Hikone school with nunome-zogan in openwork design – depicts the Battle of Miyajima of 1555, conveying the gekokujo spirit: the weak overcoming the strong through strategy and perseverance. The fuchi, signed by Sadayuki of the Hamono school, portrays the great military strategist Fang Zeng, while the kashira depicts the warlord Xiang Yu mounted in full armour. Gold Goto school crawling dragon menuki are skilfully woven into white silk jabara-ito braids in the ajirokumi-agemaki style. The tsuba, fuchi-kashira and koshirae each carry NTHK-NPO Kanteisho certificates of authenticity.