Q446. Katana signed Kawachi no Kami Kunisuke.

Nagasa: 25 9/16″ 65 cm.

Sori: 1.1 cm.

Moto haba: 3.1 cm.

Moto kasane: .7 cm

Saki haba: 2.15 cm.

Saki kasane: .45 cm.

Nakago nagasa: 8 3/8″ 21.5 cm.

Overall in shirasaya: 36 3/4″ 93 cm.

Shinogi zukuri, suriage, koshi zori, iore mune, long chu kissaki. The hada is a tight ko-itame in fine ji-nie. The hamon starts with a short yakidashi(used to be long before the blade was shortened) and becomes wild variations on choji with sunagashi, kinsuji, and other hataraki, all in a bright nioi guchi covered profusely in ko-nie: nicely done. The boshi is suguba showing a bit of nijuba on both sides, ending in ko-maru and a medium length kaeri. There are a couple three spots of slightly coarse grain on the ura and half way up the shinogi ji of the omote there is a spot that looks to be a fukure just below the surface (see my picture with the white X). The sword is in a well done polish and mounted with a gold foil habaki and decent quality shirasaya in excellent condition. This comes with a Tokubetsu Kicho paper from the NBTHK dated 1961. It comes also with a torokusho, the government issued license that all Japanese swords in Japan must possess. Note: the torokusho is just a license like the license plate on your car; it doesn’t mean the car is great, only that it is a car.

There were 4 generations of Kawachi Kami Kunisuke working in the 17th century. The 1st generation is thought to have come out of the Ishido School (thus the family’s affinity for choji hamon) to study with Horikawa Kunihiro, the founder of Shinto. After Kunihiro’s death, he and Oya Kunisada moved to Osaka and founded the Osaka School. Both 1st & 2nd generation are listed as Jo Saku in Fujishiro. The paper, as is common with the NBTHK, doesn’t specify a generation but I’m leaning toward the 2nd, who actually has a better reputation than does the 1st.

Whichever of the Kunisuke made this katana, it is a very interesting sword. 2 pounds, 10 ounces. $2,950.