A SOSHU TACHI | Christie's

A SOSHU TACHI

Details

A SOSHU TACHI
KAMAKURA PERIOD (CIRCA 1300), ATTRIBUTED TO YUKIMITSU

Configuration (sugata): with longitudinal ridge line (shinogi-zukuri), shallow peaked back (iori-mune) and medium point (chu-kissaki); length (nagasa): 2 shaku, 4.5 bu (61.9cm.); curvature (sori): shallow koshi-zori of 0.8cm.; increase in width of blade (fumbari): 0.9cm.; carving (horimono): bo-hi on both sides continuing through the tang.
Forging pattern (jihada): small wood grain (ko-itame) with chikei and bo-hi.
Tempering pattern (hamon): medium suguba with undulations (gonome) and some 'legs' (ashi), kinsuji and 'swept sands' (sunagashi) in nioi and ko-nie.
Point (boshi): gonome-komi with wide flame-brushed tip (hakikake).
Tang (nakago). Shape (keitai): regular and o-suriage; file marks (yasurime): new (kiri-yasuri); end (nakagojiri): squared (kirijiri); holes (mekugi-ana): four (one plugged); signature (mei): unsigned (mumei).

Shirasaya with attestation signed Kunzan (Homma Junji).

Accompanied by a juyo token certificate issued by the N.B.T.H.K., dated Showa 50 (1975).

Provenance

Shogun Tokugawa Ietsuna (purported)
Wakizaka family, daimyo of Tatsuno, Banshu [Hyogo] (purported)

Literature

Juyo token to zufu, vol. 23.
One Hundred Masterpieces (1992), no. 27.

Lot Essay

Yukimitsu, known as Tosaburo Yukimitsu, was a student of Shintogo Kunimitsu and foster-father of Masamune. Both he and Kunimitsu were Masamune's teachers.

This example displays the typical hamon of Yukimitsu: suguba with kinsuji, and sunagashi executed in profuse nioi and ko-nie.