A Ko-Naminohira Tachi (古波平)

The Naminohira School traces its origins to the Late Heian period (~794-1184), making it one of the oldest and most singular sword-making traditions in Japan. Working exclusively for the Satsuma clan, these smiths adhered to the strict rule of Isshi-soden – secrets of the craft passed only to one’s own son or a single chosen student. Their work is therefore genuinely rare, and the Ko-Naminohira pieces from the school’s earliest centuries are rarer still.

This tachi is approximately 800 years old. It is a deeply curved blade of classic form, proudly carried by mounted samurai at a time when the sword was the pre-eminent tool of power in Japan. The most striking feature is the ayasugi-hada – a distinctive and beautiful straight grain that flows in rhythmic waves, unlike anything produced by other schools. The chu suguha hamon is serene and confident. Nami means “wave” and hira means “flat” – together, “Calm Seas” – and the blade lives up to that name entirely.

Naminohira swords were historically favoured by the Japanese Navy for the positive omen of that name, as much as for their superb quality. This blade was registered in Showa 26 (1951) as a Daimyo-toroku, one of the very first swords entered into Japan’s postwar registration system – a document of its own importance. The o-suriage nakago retains considerable original length.