A Yasusada Tameshigiri Katana (大和守安定)

Yamato no Kami Yasusada is one of the great names of the Shintô period. Said to have origins in Echizen province, he studied under Shodai Yasutsugu before establishing himself in Edo, possibly by way of the Kishu Ishido School. Fujishiro ranks him Jo-saku – a superior swordsmith – and he carries the sharpness rating Ryo-Wazamono, denoting blades of very good cutting ability. This sword proves why. The gold-inlaid kinzogan-mei on the nakago records that master sword tester Yamano Ka’emon no Jô Nagahisa severed cleanly through three deceased convicted criminals in a single stroke – one of the most demanding feats in the history of Japanese tameshigiri. The Tanobe-sensei sayagaki describes this as a masterwork representing the true essence of Yasusada, and the blade was featured in the kantei section of the NBTHK Token Bijitsu magazine in June 2004.

The blade itself presents the hallmarks that make Yasusada immediately recognisable: a wide, robust mihaba with shallow sori in the classic Kanbun-Shintô shape, densely forged ko-itame with chikei, and a spectacular hamon of wide, gently undulating notare mixed with gunome and ô-gunome, the elements tending toward angular hako form, laden throughout with nie and a broad bright nioiguchi. The bôshi flows naturally from the hamon into a shallow notare with ko-maru-kaeri. The jihada stands out prominently and is rich with ji-nie.

Accompanying the blade is an outstanding Late Edo period uchigatana-koshirae in black stone-surface lacquer, dating from circa 1780-1867 and holding its own NBTHK Hozon certificate for the koshirae. The fuchi is signed by metalsmith master Hamano Shôzui at the age of 65, with a plum blossom and sparrow theme shared by the fuchi-kashira and menuki. The iron tsuba is a large marugata with shakudô and gold inlay, certified by the NTHK-NPO. This is a complete, museum-quality assembly of the first order.