A Tsunashige Tameshigiri Katana (陸奥守藤原綱重)

Mutsu no Kami Fujiwara Tsunashige was one of the most capable swordsmiths working in the Edo period, widely regarded as a close successor to the tradition of the great Kotetsu. The NBTHK Token Bijitsu monthly magazine featured this very sword in October 2014 as a study piece, examining the question of whether Tsunashige trained under Tsunahiro – who was himself a teacher of Kotetsu – and how many generations worked under the Tsunashige name. The article concludes that two generations are accepted, though scholars such as Dr. Sato (Kanzan) and Ogasawara-sensei have suggested there may be three. The blades of the two main generations are so closely matched that some experts have argued they are the work of a single hand.

The blade itself is outstanding. The jihada is a fine itame with shirake utsuri – whitish reflective areas that drift across the surface – along with chikei, the dark crystalline lines running through the steel. The hamon is a bright and assertive gunome midare with clear separations between the waves and striking sunagashi, the brushed needle-like passages of nie that are a hallmark of the finest Shintô work. A bo-higroove runs the length of the blade. The nakago is ubu, in saki-haagari kurijiri shape with sujikai file marks and kesho, and retains one mekugi-ana.

In the end of February 1670 this sword was subjected to a cutting test by Shibasaki Den Saemon Masatsugu, who severed two stacked human bodies in a single stroke – cutting the upper body below the rib cage and the lower body above the hipbone. The result, described as futatsu-do setsutan ue-suritsuke shita-kurumasaki, is chiselled onto the reverse of the nakago in full. It is a remarkable document of both the sword’s performance and the era in which it was made. The koshirae is equally compelling: the tsuba is attributed to the 3rd generation Higo School, depicting a kiku (chrysanthemum) in polished iron with gilded petals; the fuchi shows warriors in battle, while the kashira depicts the great sea battle of Dan-no-ura (1185) from the Genpei War, attributed to Mitsunobu of the Mino School. All fittings carry NTHK-NPO Kanteisho certification.