Lot 63A
Asia, Japan, Edo Period, ca. 1630 CE. An incredible samurai's katana with a slightly curved, single-edged blade, a saya (scabbard) made of wood studded with white and purple shell, and a handle (tsuka) with stingray skin and woven leather straps around it. The top of the handle - the kashira - is made of iron, as is the hand guard (tsuba). The tsuba has incised lines with inlaid gilt, some of which remains, forming a scene of a bearded man wearing a large kasa, a traditional hat, and a robe, standing underneath the curved branches of a leafy tree. The tsuka has two cast bronze menuki, ornaments designed to balance the grip, both of which are partially concealed by the woven leather but appear to be in the form of long-tailed dragon-like animals. The blade is signed with incised kanji, "Yasutsugu oite Echizen saku kore, with Aoi mon" and is in the shinogi-zukuri shape. Generally, the person who made the katana would have carved the name and date on it. Size: 41.6" L x 3.3" W (105.7 cm x 8.4 cm)
The katana is an example of a daito, a long sword, that could only be worn by samurai of higher rank (shorter swords called wakizashi could be worn by craftsmen, traders, and merchants, and are more commonly found today). Over the centuries that katana were made, the process of their manufacture became heavily regulated. For example, in 1683, the Tokugawa Shogunate made laws about the maximum size of katana and wakizashi. Meanwhile, once a samurai took ownership of his new weapon, he had to wear it in a highly regulated manner. Katana in this period were both deadly weapons and signs of status. The craftsmanship of this piece is evident and reflects hundreds of hours of work.
Provenance: private Jones collection, Boulder, Colorado, USA
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#123910
- Condition: Blade is in excellent condition with two small flaws. There is a about a half inch rust area on the cutting edge and about a half inch of coarse forging. The tang has slight wear to its surface and has not been oiled (unlike the blade). Patina from age and handling on the leather surfaces.
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