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Shinto Sunnobi Tanto by Takahashi Naganobu, 1846

About the Item

A Shinto Sunnobi Tanto by Takahashi Naganobu, 1846 Unsho Takahashi Naganobu / A lucky day of August Koka san-nen (1846) Yokota became monk with this sword - NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Token - Published: Yoshihiro Abe, Unsho Tosho Takahashi Tsumbo-shi - Nobunaga no Kenkyu, 1988, pag. 301 - Nagasa [length]: 33 cm Motohaba [bottom width]: 3.1 cm Motokasane [bottom thickness]: 7.4 mm - Sugata [configuration]: Hira-zukuri, iori-mune, Kitae [forging pattern]: Ko-mokume hada mixed to masame and muji-fu Hamon [tempering pattern]: Gunome choji in nioi deki. Nioiguchi well defined, with ashi and tobiyaki Boshi [point]: Notarekomi with kaeri. Nakago [tang]: Ubu, kirijiri, sujikai yasurime; one mekugi-ana - Origami [paper]: The blade comes with a Tokubetsu Hozon Token (Sword Particularly Worth of Preserving) certificate issued by the Nihon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kyokai.  Sayagaki [certification on shirasaya]: Inscription by Yoshikawa Kyoen Born in 1817 and raised under the names Zenzo first and Sezaki Heisuke later, Naganobu became in 1829 a pupil of Fuyuhiro, by whom he was adopted and with whom he worked as the official swordsman of Matsudaira Sadayasu until 1838, when at the very behest of his lord, he moved to Edo to study under Chounsai Tsunatoshi, one of the most renowned swordsmen of the Shinto era. After a few years, in 1841, he then opened his own forge and changed his name to Takahashi Naganobu. He then began working for the Matsue clan in Izumo (Unsho), for whom he forged blades until his death in 1869. Naganobu's blades are similar to Tsunatoshi's, with imposing and characteristic shapes that, as in this case, hark back to the Bizen tradition. The jigane is soft and occasionally displays masame. His blades are always razor-sharp, and legend has it that one of his swords was used to cut a machine gun during World War II. Naganobu was also active in teaching; his most prominent disciples include Nobuhide, Toshihiro, Nobuyoshi, Nobukazu, Nobukura, Sukenori, and Shimane Shinkai. The sunnobi-tanto is a tanto that exceeds the maximum size for this type of sword, a shaku (30 cm), by one sun, or 3 cm.
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 13 in (33 cm)Width: 0.3 in (7.4 mm)Depth: 1.23 in (3.1 cm)
  • Materials and Techniques:
  • Place of Origin:
  • Period:
  • Date of Manufacture:
    1846
  • Condition:
  • Seller Location:
    Milano, IT
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU4250230610342
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