A Chikuzen Moritsugu Katana (筑前国福岡住守次)

Chikuzen Moritsugu is one of the finest smiths working in the Bizen tradition during the early Edo period. A cousin of Koretsugu – the founder of the Fukuoka Ishidô school, who trained under the great Ishido Korekazu – Moritsugu inherited both the lineage and the aesthetic sensibility of a school renowned for its lush, Bizen-derived choji-midare. The Fukuoka Ishidô smiths gave that tradition their own character: a hamon that slants (saka) and throws up distinctive squid-like peaks, with traces of ko-nie rather than the pure nioi-deki of the Bizen Ichimonji school. The nakago characters are chiselled in the school’s celebrated rounded style.

The blade measures 66.45cm with ubu nakago and 1.2cm sori. The jihada is a tightly forged ko-itame with traces of masame and the clear shirake utsuri – the misty shadow hamon characteristic of the Bizen lineage – visible across the flat. The hamon is a flowing gunome choji midare with ko-nie and dancing sunagashi, certified NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon in 2015.

The sword is presented in a recently completed custom koshirae that pays tribute to the glory of rice – an agricultural and spiritual cornerstone of Japanese culture for more than 2,000 years, and during the Edo period the very currency by which samurai were paid. The open-work iron tsuba, signed by Masakata of Bushu (modern Tokyo, circa 1700s), depicts rice stalks with gold accents and carries NTHK-NPO Kanteishô papers. The fuchi-kashira and menuki – sparrows on bamboo shoots, symbols of bountiful harvest – are likewise certified Edo period and crafted from shakudo. White woven silk over white samekawa completes an ensemble of exceptional coherence.