Lot 17
East Asia, Japan, early Edo Period, ca. 1650s CE, signed "Omi-daijo Fujiwara Tadahiro" on tang. A beautiful steel wakizashi with a shinogi-zukuri form blade bearing a wavy chusuguba temper pattern and a diamond-shaped tip. The handle is fit with shark skin and bound with tight wrappings with a pair of ornamental menuki bound within. The handle is fitted with gilt-iron fuchi and kashira, and the marugata tsuba features wispy plants decorated with gilding. The scabbard is covered in black lacquer and fitted with a maroon-hued tie belt; the scabbard is likely a modern replacement for the original. Size (w/ sheath): 32" L x 2.8" W x 2.7" H (81.3 cm x 7.1 cm x 6.9 cm); (blade): 21.2" L x 1.125" W (53.8 cm x 2.9 cm)
This traditional Japanese sword was both a weapon and a symbol of authority and social status. The wakizashi paired with the longer katana sword marked the wearer as a samurai. The shorter sword was seen as an auxiliary weapon, also used for fighting in close quarters. Wakizashi could also be worn by non-samurai if worn alone, and members of the merchant class (chonin) wore them because of the frequency of encountering bandits when traveling between Japan's cities.
Over the centuries that katana and wakizashi were made, the process of their manufacture became heavily regulated. For example, in 1683, the Tokugawa Shogunate made laws concerning 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. Wakizashi and katana in this period were both deadly weapons and signs of prestige. The craftsmanship of this piece is evident and reflects hundreds of hours of work.
Provenance: private Jones collection, Boulder, Colorado, USA; ex-private Sacramento, California, USA collection
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#186056
- Condition: Blade and tsuba are from the early Edo period; scabbard and handle components are likely modern replacements. Very light abrasions to blade, with minor softening to signature on tang, otherwise in excellent condition. Great luster on blade.
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