SUPERBLY CARVED IRON JAPANESE TSUBA 100523
Read moreThis is a fantastic Japanese tsuba. I just acquired it and have not, as yet, put it to shinsa but…
HEIAN ERA TACHI BY OHARA SANEMORI 大原真守 000049
Read moreOne old account says that Hôki Yasutsuna (伯耆安綱), the founder of the Ko-Hôki school lived in the Daido era (806-810). …
WAKASA NO KAMI UJIFUSA KATANA (若狭守氏房) Owned by DAIMYO HIRAOKA YORIKATSU (平岡頼勝)
Read moreHiraoka Yorikatsu (平岡頼勝) was born in Eiroku three (永禄1560) as son of Hiraoka Yoritoshi (平岡頼俊). Yorikatsu’s given name was Tōzō…
FUKUOKA ICHIMONJI YOSHIFUSA TACHI 福岡一文字吉房
Read moreThe Ichimonji School (一文字) in Bizen Province was a large school that was founded in the beginning of the Kamakura…
TSUBA BY KITAGAWA SHÛTEN 喜多川秀典 010123
Read moreThis is something rarely offered for sale. A tsuba by the first generation Sôheishi Sôten, the founder of the very…
JÛYÔ TANTÔ KOSHIRAE BY SASAYAMA TOKUOKI 篠山篤興
Read moreTokuoki (篤興) was born on November 17th of Bunka 10 (1813) and he passed away on December 10 of Meiji…
TACHI BY BIZEN OSAFUNE KAGEMITSU 備前長船景光
Read moreBizen Kagemitsu (備前景光) was the son of Bizen Nagamitsu (備前長光) who was, in turn, the son of the founder of…
TANBA NO KAMI YOSHIMICHI WAKIZASHI IN OUTSTANDING KOSHIRAE (丹波守吉道) 110822
Read moreWe are pleased to present a very unusual and beautiful wakizashi from the Kyotô Shintô Yoshimichi smith lineage. This blade…
BEAUTIFUL KAGA GOTÔ KOZUKA （加賀後藤小柄）110722
Read moreNihonto.com is pleased to present this absolutely wonderful gold, silver, and shakudo kozuka. Let me start by saying that the…
Gallery |A TOKUBETSU JÛYÔ FUKUOKA ICHIMONJI TACHI BY YOSHIHIRA福岡一文字吉平 00043
Read moreThe Ichimonji School (一文字) in Bizen Province was a large school that was founded in the beginning of the Kamakura…
BEAUTIFUL KAGA GOTÔ KOZUKA 加賀後藤小柄 050822
Read moreHere we have an absolutely beautiful kozuka from the mid-Edo period (circa 1700). As noted it was made by the…
NIDAI MURAMASA 二代村正 070122
Read moreIt is a pleasure to be able to offer for sale this tantô by the famous (or infamous) smith, the…
JÛYÔ MITOKOROMONO BY GOTÔ ETSUJÔ 後藤悦乗
Read moreEtsujō (悦乗) was born in the 19th year of Kanei (1642) as second son of the 9th Gotō main line…
OUTSTANDING JÛYÔ DAISHÔ SATSUMA KOSHIRAE (薩摩拵) 110121
Read moreWe are pleased to present this excellent and important Satsuma daishô koshirae from the 19th century. This is an excellent…
JUST A JITTE (十手)? I THINK NOT……
Read moreA jitte (十手), sometimes pronounced jutte, is a specialized weapon that was used by Edo-period police officers. They are generally…
AN UNUSUAL AND DEADLY INKWELL
Read moreThis is a large and very unusual yatate (inkwell) that proves, once again, that the pen is mightier than the…
DAISHO OF TSUBA AND MENUKI BY GOTÔ ICHIJÔ
Read moreIchijô was born in Kyôto on the third day of the third month of the third year of Kansei (March…
OUTSTANDING SET OF JÛYÔ FITTINGS BY GOTÔ ICHIJÔ
Read moreIchijô was born in Kyôto on the third day of the third month of the third year of Kansei (March…
WAKIZASHI BY SHODAI NOBUKUNI 信国 050721
Read moreNihonto.com is pleased to present this fine wakizashi by the Shodai (first generation) Nobukuni (信国). The first generation Nobukuni (信国)…
A DAISHO OF SWORDS BY DEWA-DAIJÔ KUNIMICHI 出羽大掾國路 #070120
Read moreWhile it is firmly established in many reference books that Kunimichi(國路) was a student of Horikawa Kunihiro (堀川國廣), no records…
AN EXTREMELY UNUSUAL SET OF JÛYÔ KODÔGU BY MIYAMOTO MUSASHI
Read moreMiyamoto Musashi (1584-1645) whose art name was Niten, achieved great fame as a master swordsman. In the seventeenth year of…
HASEBE KATANA 長谷部 110119
Read moreHasebe Kunishige (長谷部国重) has long been considered to be a pupil of Masamune (正宗) (Masamune Juttetsu). His oldest remaining dated…
GÔ YOSHIHIRO 江義弘 110518
Read moreYoshihiro (義弘) is one of the most famous sword smiths of all time. Yoshihiro’s (義弘) given name was Matsukura Go…
HIGO JINGO TSUBA 010320
Read moreThis tsuba is from the Higo Jingo school. It measures 2 ¾ inches by 2 11/16 inches nor 7 cm…
TACHI BY KO-BIZEN HIRONAO 古備前弘直100119
Read moreThe Bizen Province, since ancient times, produced many fine swordsmiths who worked throughout all the periods of sword history from…
JÛYÔ TENSHO ERA UCHIGATANA KOSHIRAE 110419
Read moreI am pleased to present this truly rare item for sale. It is an original and intact uchigatana koshirae from…
A JÛYÔ SET OF DAISHO GOTÔ ICHIJÔ KODOGU 後藤一乗 110619
Read moreIchijô was born in Kyôto on the third day of the third month of the third year of Kansei (March…
KATANA BY NIDAI KUNISUKE WITH CUTTING TEST 二代国助 000533
Read moreI am pleased to present this outstanding katana by the second generation Kunisuke. His father the Shodai Kunisuke was a student…
SHINSAKUTÔ BY ENOMOTO SADAYOSHI 貞吉000536
Read moreThis is an outstanding shinsakuto by Enomoto Sadayoshi of the Gassan School. Enamoto Sadayoshi is the sword name of Enomoto…
KOTÔ KATANA BY SUKESADA 祐定000534
Read moreThis is a blade by Sukesada and it is dated as being made in the August of the fourth year…
JÛYÔ TÔSÔGU ÔNIN TSUBA 応仁鐔 080219
Read moreNihonto.com is pleased to present for sale a truly special tsuba. This is one of only three Ônin tsuba that have…
KOTÔ ERA TSUKA 080119
Read moreThis is a very unusual item. It is a tsuka from a wakizashi that dates to the Kotô era. It…
YANAGI-BA PRESENTATION YANONE 071219
Read moreThis is an outstanding presentation Yanagi-ba yanone. This point is signed Muneyuki. This type of flat blade Yanagi-ba yanone (willow…
YANAGI-BA PRESENTATION YANONE 071119
Read moreThis is a very impressive presentation Yanagi-ba yanone. This point is signed Shigeharu Saku. This type of flat blade Yanagiba…
RARE LARGE PRESENTATION YANONE 070919
Read moreThis is a rare large presentation Yanone, its signed Iyeyoshi saku (家義作). It is probably from Kaga around the Kanbun…
RARE PRESENTATION YANONE 070819
Read moreThis is a rare signed presentation yanone, signed Masayoshi on the nakago. Presentation yanone are very difficult to find and…
YANAGI-BA YANONE 070719
Read moreThis type of flat blade Yanagiba yanone (willow leaf shape) is a difficult to find. What makes this rare is…
HIRATA HIKOZO JÛYÔ TSUBA 000045
Read moreNihonto.com is extremely proud to offer this top quality example of one of the most famous of the Higo tsubako,…
BEAUTIFUL EDO ERA TSUBA 020119
Read moreThis is a large and well executed Edo kinko tsuba. The iron plate is well made and carved with a…
AOE SCHOOL KATANA (青江) 010419
Read moreI am pleased to present this Jûyô Tôken naginata-naoshi katana by the Bitchû Aoe school of the late Kamakura era…
A VERY “PUNNY” TANTÔ
Read moreThis little tantô brings with it good fortune for a Samurai. Anyone familiar with Japanese food knows that dashi (fish…
MINI TSUBA MENUKI
Read moreTwo of the greatest tsuba artists of all time are Nobuiye and Kaneiye. Both did outstanding work in iron tsuba…
MINO KANEFUSA KO-WAKIZASHI (兼房) 000526
Read moreThis is a kotô ko-wakizashi by the Mino smith Kanefusa. There were several generations of kotô smiths by this name…
DAISHO BY SHODAI HIZEN MUNETSUGU (肥前宗次) #020218
Read moreThe first generation Hizen Munetsugu (肥前宗次) was originally called Sakai Mitsuemon or Sakai Sanuemon (境三右衛門). His first residence was in…
BIZEN TACHI BY TSUNEIYE (経家) #050218
Read moreAt the beginning of the Muromachi (室町)era around the Oei (応永)era (1394) most of the different schools in the Bizen…
OUTSTANDING JÛYÔ TÔKEN BIZEN ICHIMONJI KATANA 一文字 #051018
Read moreThe Ichimonji School (一文字)in Bizen Province was a large school that was founded in the beginning of the Kamakura period…
EXTREMELY RARE TANTÔ BY YASUKUNI YASUTOSHI 靖利#050918
Read moreYasutoshi (靖利)was born in the fourth year of Taisho in Hiroshima Prefecture. He was the third son of Yasutoku who became…
TINY ABUMI FOR A TINY SAMURAI
Read moreOne of the latest additions to my collection of unusual things (mezurashii mono) are these two tiny stirrups (abumi). They…
I “SAW” THIS SOMEWHERE…
Read moreThis is a very unusual 0-kozuka. It was made by the sword smith, Shigenobu of Tamba. Shigenobu worked around the…
EARLY KO-KINKO TSUBA 古金工鐔 #050118
Read moreThis is a splendid example of epitome of tsuba art from the early Muromachi Era (early 1400’s). It has been…
MUROMACHI ERA (ca 1532) WAKIZASHI KOSHIRAE #071814
Read moreThis is a rare item, indeed. It is an intact and original koshirae from the middle Muromachi era of around…
NANBOKUCHÔ ERA TACHI OF THE HOKKE SCHOOL (法華系)
Read moreThis is a powerful blade of the Hokke school of Bingo Provence. It is unsigned but that is usually the…
A WONDERFUL JÛYÔ TACHI BY THE AOE SCHOOL
Read moreThis wonderful tachi from the Kamakura Era and its accompanying tachi koshirae would be a wonderful addition to anyone’s collection. …
OUTSTANDING KATANA BY BIZEN NAGAMITSU 備前永光
Read moreIt is with great pleasure that I am able to offer this wonderful katana from the Muromachi era. Nagamitsu worked…
MASSIVE KATANA BY KANETAKA (金高)
Read moreThis is a very wide and strong katana by the Mino smith, Kanetaka. It is signed Harima (no) Kami Kanetaka.…
KATANA BY ECHIGO YUKIMICHI WITH KOSHIRAE (越後幸道）
Read moreThis is a very nice katana by the smith Yukimichi. Yukimichi was a smith who worked in Echigo Province around…
MOUNTED KATANA BY MUNEYUKI (統行)
Read moreThis is an absolutely beautiful koto katana attributed to the Bungo Takada smith, Muneyuki. Muneyuki was a smith who worked…
NANBOKUCHÔ ERA TACHI BY AKIKUNI
Read moreThis is a very beautiful and powerful tachi from the late Nanbokucho Era (1300's). It has been attributed by the…
BEAUTIFULLY MOUNTED TANTO BY ARIKOTO 有功
Read moreArikoto was a sword smith from Kyoto who worked around 1848. He was a student of Omori Toshihide and Morioka…
KATANA BY TAKADA MUNEYUKI 髙田統行 #021018
Read moreThis is a mumei katana from the Koto period. It has been attributed to the smith, Muneyuki, who was from…
A POWERFUL KATANA BY YAMAURA YOSHINOBU 山浦義信 #110217
Read moreThis is a very interesting and rare katana by the Shinshintô smith, Yoshinobu. Yoshinobu was a smith from Shinano province…
KATANA BY CHIKUZEN NOBUKUNI YOSHIKANE 筑前信国吉兼
Read moreThis is a very attractive katana by the well known Chikuzen smith, Nobukuni Yoshikane. He was called Sukezaemon and was…
KOJIRI by MATSUO GASSAN 松尾月山
Read moreMatsuo Gassan (松尾月山) was born in September of 1815 and he passed away on March 18, 1875. He was the…
KURIKATA by ISSHIN (Masatatsu) 一真 (政龍)
Read moreIsshin (一真 ) was born in Kyôto on November 11, 1814 and he died on December4, 1882. His father, Baba…
FUCHI/KASHIRA by KAWARABASHI HIDEKUNI 川原林秀国
Read moreHidekuni (秀国) was born on March 10, 1825 and he died on September 27, 1891. He was the son of…
MENUKI by AOKI HARUTSURA 青木春貴
Read moreHarutsura (春貴) was born in Kyôto in 1805 and he died on February 14, 1858. He was the son of…
TSUBA by SASAYAMA TOKUOKI 篠山篤興
Read moreTokuoki (篤興) was born on November 17th of Bunka 10 (1813) and he passed away on December 10 of Meiji…
KOZUKA by KANÔ NATSUO 加納夏雄
Read moreKanô Natsuo (加納夏雄) was born on April 14th of the 11th year of Bunsei (1828) as the son of a…
MOON OVER MY FANNY
Read moreI am calling this newest addition to my mezurashii mono collection of unusual things, moon over my fanny (apologies to…
JÛYÔ KO-KINKÔ TSUBA
Read moreThis is an absolutely outstanding ko-kinko tsuba that dates to the early Muromachi era (early 1400's). While it is somewhat…
KO-GATANA BY KINMICHI
Read moreKO-GATANA BY KINMICHI This is a very nice ko-gatana which is purported to have been made by the fifth generation…
Ko-wakizashi by Kinmichi in outstanding original koshirae
Read moreThis is a ko-wakizashi that is singed Iga (no) Kami Kinmichi on the emote and a Kiku Mon together with…
JÛYÔ TSUBA BY NOMURA KANENORI 野村包教
Read moreKanenori was a student of the first generation Kitagawa Sôten (Munenori). He was from Hikone in Ômi Province. He worked…
HAND CANNON NETSUKE
Read moreThis is a cute item that I just acquired in Japan. It is a netsuke made in the form of…
(NSFW) A very rare kozuka by Goto Eijô 後藤栄乗(1574-1617).
Read more(NSFW) This is an exceedingly rare kozuka done with a shunga subject of a man and a woman in an…
TWO COPPER Ô-KOZUKA 素銅大小柄
Read moreBelow are two suaka 素銅 (copper) ô-kozuka. The top one is copper with a large shakudo river boat floating amid…
THREE BRASS Ô-KOZUKA 真鍮大小柄
Read moreBelow are three shinchû 真鍮 (brass) ô-kozuka. The top one is actually gilded in gold with silver inlay of what…
TWO SHIBUICHI Ô-KOZUKA 四分一大小柄
Read moreBelow are two shibuichi (四分一)ô-kozuka. Shibuichi is a composite metal made of three parts copper to one part silver. The…
TWO KO-KINKO Ô-KOZUKA 古金工大小柄
Read moreThe image below shows two Ko-Kinko ô-kozuka. The first one is large measuring 4 3/4 inches by 3/4 inches. It…
TWO WAKI-GOTÔ Ô-KOZUKA 脇後藤
Read moreThe top ô-kozuka depicts the battle of Dan-no-Ura which was the ultimate conflict between the Taira and the Minamoto in…
KAGA GOTÔ Ô-KOZUKA 加賀後藤大小柄
Read moreSome years ago, I developed an interest in ô-kozuka. These are kozuka that are larger than the norm and were…
THREE KO-GATANA FOR Ô-KOZUKA 大小柄の小刀
Read moreAs one would expect, oversized kozuka (ô-kozuka) require oversized blades (ko-gatana). The word, ko-gatana, literally means small sword. Whether…
THREE GOTÔ Ô-KOZUKA 後藤大小柄
Read moreThe three kozuka below are of the Gotô school with the top one being attributed to Gotô Eijô also called…
THREE SHAKUDO Ô-KOZUKA 赤銅大小柄
Read moreBelow are three shakudo (赤銅)ô-kozuka. The top ô-kozuka is from the kinko school. It is a deep and rich shakudo…
FOUR IRON Ô-KOZUKA 鉄大小柄
Read moreBelow are four o-kozuka made of iron. The top o-kozuka is very interesting. The reverse is gilded in silver with…
TWO Ô-KOZUKA 大小柄
Read moreThis is an iron ô-kozuka measuring 4 3/8 inches by 7/8 inches. It has a crescent moon outlined in silver…
SAMURAI “BOY SCOUT” KOZUKA
Read moreThe Samurai who carried this kozuka believed in the Boy Scout motto of “Be Prepared”. No matter where he roamed,…
TWO Ô-KOGAI 大笄
Read moreThe image below shows three kogai. There top kogai is one of “normal” proportions to show the relative size of…
JEWISH/BUDDHIST SAMURAI?
Read moreOY VEY!! What have we here? Little did I know that one of my ancestors was the one and only…
TANTÔ FOR THE SAMURAI ON THE GO
Read moreWhat can we say that hasn’t already been said? Those Japanese koshirae makers had all kinds of talent. Here we…
UNUSUAL FUTOKOROMONO 珍しいの二所物
Read moreThis is a set of kozuka and kogai (futokoromono) that once belonged to the main Tokugawa family. Both pieces are…
YOSHIOKA SCHOOL MITOKOROMONO 吉岡三所物
Read moreThis is a beautiful mitokoromono (set of three items) that has been attributed by the NBTHK to Inaba no Suke…
TOOLS FOR THE POETIC SAMURAI
Read moreThis item is just soooo darn cute. Because the blade is so small, I would hesitate to call it a…
THIS TANTÔ IS EASY ON THE EYES
Read moreThis items quite unbelievable. On the outside, just a normal tantô. When hidden panels are opened on either end, its…
GUN FOR A PENPAL
Read moreThis is a pistol that cannot shoot you but it can cause heartache. It is not suitable for firing, only…
HIDDEN KABUTOWARE
Read moreThis tantô can really give someone a headache. Made in the mid 1700’s this tantô koshirae houses a wickedly heavy…
SMOKE UM IF YOU GOT UM
Read moreGot a light? Here we have a simple 19th century pipe case and tobacco pouch. OOPS…. ? What have we…
TANTÔ FOR THE YOSHIWARA
Read moreThis is a tantô for the Samurai of modest means. Hidden in the bottom of the saya is a removable…
A “FAN” FOR ALL SEASONS
Read moreHere is a really “cool” item to carry around on those hot and humid days in old Edo (present day…
TANTÔ FOR JAMES BOND-SAN
Read moreSamurai spy? Who else would carry an item such as this? On the outside a non-assuming tantô.
TANTÔ or PURSE
Read moreHere is a tantô that will keep you from going broke. It’s not really a tantô, its a surreptitious way…
A TANTÔ FOR THE PREPARED SAMURAI
Read moreSince Samurai were known to live life on the edge, they never knew when they might meet their demise and…
A BANGING GOOD TANTÔ
Read moreThis is an extremely rare and interesting item. When worn in the obi, it appears to be an ordinary tantô.…
HAND CANNON/INKWELL
Read moreThis is a very interesting item from my mezurashii 珍しいもの (unusual items) collection. When fully assembled,
OUTSTANDING JÛYÔ TÔKEN BY BIZEN KANENAGA
Read moreThis is an outstanding katana that has been attributed to the well-known Bizen smith, Kanenaga (兼長). Kanenaga (兼長) is known…
KATANA BY ECHIZEN TSUGUHIRO 継廣
Read moreOmi no Kami Tsuguhiro was a member of the Echizen Seki school. He was one of many swordsmiths who moved…
AKASAKA TSUBA by TADATOKI 忠時の赤坂鐔
Read moreThis is a large tachi style tsuba of the Akasaka school. It is signed by its maker, Tadatoki.
TSUBA BY KIYOMITSU 清光
Read moreThis tsuba is signed Choshu Ju Kiyomitsu. This artist worked in Choshu (Nagato Pref.), probably in the 1800's. It is…
THE SÔSHÛ SCHOOL OF THE NANBOKUCHÔ ERA –SÔSHÛ AKIHIRO 相州秋広
Read moreIn the year 1185 after his victory at the battle of Dan-no-ura, Minamoto Yoritomo decided to move the center of…
AKITA SHOAMI TSUBA 秋田正阿弥鐔 #000518
Read moreThis is a lovely Shinchû 真鍮 (brass) tsuba. It measures 6.9 cm or 2.7 inches by 6.3 cm or 2.5…
JÛYÔ NAOE SHIZU KATANA 直江志津
Read moreA beautiful and graceful tachi that has been shortened to katana length. It was awarded Juyo Token status as belonging…
IMPORTANT KODÔGU BY MIYAMOTO MUSASHI 宮本武蔵
Read moreMiyamoto Musashi (1584-1645) whose art name was Niten, achieved great fame as a master swordsman. In the seventeenth year of…
JÛYÔ HIRATA HIKOZÔ TSUBA 平田彦三
Read moreDesignated Jûyô Tôsôgu at the 61st Shinsa of 20 October, the 27th year of Heisei (2015)
UNUSUAL WAKIZASHI KOSHIRAE by Takahashi Kiyotsugu 高橋清次
Read moreThis is a very unusual and interesting wakizashi koshirae. It dates to the last half of the nineteenth century and…
A FINE SUIT OF MID-EDO PERIOD RUSSET IRON ARMOR #000512
Read moreThis is a very nice suit of armor from the middle Edo period. The helmet is an unsigned 32 plate…
UNUSUAL ITOMAKI NO TACHI KOSHIRAE
Read moreThis is a lovely Itomaki no Tachi koshirae. The saya is covered in bits of shell giving it a rich…
FUCHI AND KASHIRA BY HAMANO SHIGEYUKI
Read moreI am pleased to offer thsi very attractive fuchi and kashira by the Hamano artist Shigeyuki. His name can also…
SUPERB KAGA GOTO FUCHI AND KASHIRA SET #111216
Read moreThis is one of the finest sets of fuchi and kashira that I have come across in many years. I…
KAGA GOTO KOZUKA #110416
Read moreThis is a very nice kozuka that has been attributed to the Kaga Goto school. It is a superb example…
UNUSUAL KAGA GOTO KOZUKA #111514
Read moreThis is a very interesting and unusual Kaga Goto kozuka. It is done in shakudo nanako with a dragon done…
