A Shinto Period, Circa 1650, Samurai Wakazashi, Of Extraordinary Beauty, Encompassing Numerous Contrasting Features. A Multitude Of Traditional Samurai Sword Koshirae Of The Finest Artistic Merit & Combined With A Magnificent Blade

A stunning colour combination of blue-green silk tsukaito hilt binding, with an amazing sea green ishime stone finish urushi lacquer saya. The hilt is mounted with a silver and gold handachi style kabuto-gane mount decorated throughout with a profuse hand-punched nanako ground, and a round, gold ito shitodome. Beneath the ito wrap are a pair of gold and shakudo cockerals above samegawa {giant rayskin}. The fuchi is of hammered takebori gold and silver prunus flowers and leaves on shakudo ground.

The blade is an absolute wonder, its hamon, Ō-midare, is extraordinarily complex and incredibly beautiful.
Ō-midare translates to "large irregular." It is a dynamic, chaotic, and undulating tempering pattern featuring large, sweeping waves, peaks, and valleys.

While it first appeared in earlier Koto periods, it became a defining signature of the Soshu tradition. Pioneered by legendary masters like Masamune and Sadamune, this school is renowned for its aggressively tempered, complex, and beautiful blades.

Later Soshu (Nanbokucho period onward): When referring to later Sagami or subsequent smiths influenced by the school (such as the Hasebe or later Sue-Soshu smiths), the Ō-midare became even more pronounced and varied.Hataraki: Later Soshu-style Ō-midare heavily features dynamic temper activities (hataraki) within the steel. You will often find vigorous crystals (nie), flowing lines of steel (sunagashi), and glowing golden streaks (kinsuji).
Unlike the straight, rigid Suguha hamon, the undulating valleys of an Ō-midare pattern act as multiple structural relief points, helping absorb impacts and reducing the odds of the sword breaking. It is somewhat reminiscent to us of the hamon on the missing national treasure, the Kokuhô Honjo Masamune sword, its hamon is very well known, and recorded.

The Honjo Masamune was passed down through generations of Japanese shoguns, symbolizing the power and prestige of its owners. It is believed to have been in the possession of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate.
The sword's whereabouts have been a subject of intrigue since the end of World War II. It was last seen in 1945 when it was surrendered to an American officer during the occupation of Japan. Its current location remains unknown. If found it would likely be valued in the many tens, or even hundreds of millions of pounds.

It has a very good Edo period Shinto era 'Nakago Form' Kodzuka utility biknife.
Iron body inlaid with copper kanji, with the signature kanji of a famous sword smith, and the Imperial chrysanthemum mon. Kodzuka have been collectable items for many centuries, simply as works of art, even though they were functional knife handles, for the utility blades that fitted into wakizashi, tanto and katana saya. They can vary in quality, and this is a most fine example, inlaid with pure copper. What is particularly scarce is that it is shaped like the tang of the sword, complete with simulated mekugi ana, and signed in much the same way. This type is rare and very collectable and represent very famous swords made by master swordsmiths in samurai history. It has a long thin blade that slotted into it's opening, and the blade was often considered to be almost of a disposable nature, with the handle itself being the prized part.

As once told to us by an esteemed regular visitor to us here in our gallery, and the same words that are repeated in his book;

“In these textures lies an extraordinary and unique feature of the sword - the steel itself possesses an intrinsic beauty. The Japanese sword has been appreciated as an art object since its perfection some time during the tenth century AD. Fine swords have been more highly prized than lands or riches, those of superior quality being handed down from generation to generation. In fact, many well-documented swords, whose blades are signed by their makers, survive from nearly a thousand years ago. Recognizable features of the blades of hundreds of schools of sword-making have been punctiliously recorded, and the study of the sword is a guide to the flow of Japanese history.”
Victor Harris
Curator, Assistant Keeper and then Keeper (1998-2003) of the Department of Japanese Antiquities at the British Museum. He studied from 1968-71 under Sato Kenzan, Tokyo National Museum and Society for the Preservation of Japanese Swords.

The wakizashi is a traditional Japanese short sword that served as a samurai's auxiliary weapon. Emerging in the 15th and 16th centuries, it evolved into a powerful symbol of status and honor, becoming the constant companion of the samurai class.
The wakizashi developed as an evolution of earlier short swords like the tanto (dagger). Its name translates to "sword thrust on the side," indicating its role as a secondary blade worn at the hip. During the Edo period, the Tokugawa shogunate required samurai to wear a pair of swords known as the daishō (meaning "big-little")—a katana and a wakizashi. This pair became the exclusive symbol of the warrior class.

Because the long katana was often required to be left at the door when entering, as a visitor or emissary, a castle or home, the wakizashi was allowed to be worn indoors as a symbol of trust, proffered to the visiting samurai. It served as vital self-defense and was highly effective in narrow, confined spaces.

Samurai famously used the wakizashi with the chisa-katana in dual-wielding styles, such as the Niten Ichi-ryū school pioneered by the legendary swordsman Miyamoto Musashi. In the chaos of the battlefield, it acted as a backup blade for close combat or finishing off a fallen foe.

The wakizashi also had a solemn role, frequently used to perform seppuku (ritual suicide) when a samurai needed to restore his honour.

Code: 26243