Osaka Gassan Sadakazu — Katana (Meiji 30)
Gassan school (Osaka)
Smith: Osaka Gassan Sadakazu Saku (Gassan Sadakazu II)
Signed (stamped): Osaka Gassan Sadakazu Saku, Meiji 30-nen 8-gatsu Hi; nakago engraved 'Motte Sōshū Kamakura Masamune Den' (以相州鎌倉正宗伝)
Gendaitō — Meiji 30 (1897), August
Measurements
Sori
2.0 cm (0.78 in)
Motohaba
2.85 cm (1.12 in)
Sakihaba
2.0 cm (0.78 in)
Kasane
0.64 cm (0.25 in)
Blade Characteristics
Hamon
Nie-deki gunome-midare; ashi works well, kinsuji also works; boshi turns back round
Hada
Ko-itame filled with lines, becoming plain
Bōshi
Turns back round
Nakago Notes
1 mekugi-ana; ububa (original edge) left; 'Motte Sōshū Kamakura Masamune Den' engraved on nakago
Mountings & Fittings
Koshirae Notes
Stored in shirasaya; gold-foiled double habaki
Papers & Documentation
Appraisal Status
NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Token
NBTHK / NTHK Notes
NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Token; ranked Jōjō Saku. Aoi Art estimation paper with whole oshigata.
Provenance
Listed by Aoi Art (aoijapan.com), Ordering No. 26051
About This Object
A Gendaitō katana by Gassan Sadakazu (the second-generation Sadakazu), forged in August 1897 in the Sōshū Kamakura Masamune tradition. Gendaitō are modern-era swords (Meiji–early Shōwa) made by traditional methods. Sadakazu was later accredited as an Important Intangible Cultural Property (Living National Treasure) in Shōwa 46 and received the Order of the Rising Sun.