Ryo Hisanobu Katana 1308 - 1310

RYO HISANOBU KATANA 1308 - 1310

* CLICK IMAGE TO SEE LARGER PIC*

Kamakura period Enkyo Era. 1308 - 1310 AD

Signature: : Mumei (Ryo Hisanobu - attribution by NBTHK)

NBTHK TOKUBETSU HOZON CERTIFICATE # 146280
A sword designated as Extraordinarily Worthy of Conservation by the Society for the Preservation of the Japan Art Sword.

For a sword to receive TOKUBETSU HOZON, the sword would have had to clear the seven HOZON criteria to such a fantastic degree to realize such importance.
When swords achieve such standing, their value increases substantially.

Fujishiro Ranking : Jo Jo Saku (Superior – Superior made = Highly Superior)

Blade is polished by a high ranking polisher

Nagasa (Length): 67.11 cm
Sori (Curvature) : 2.7 cm
Mekugi: 2
Width at hamachi: 2.855 cm
Kasane: 0.64 cm

Jigane: Ko-Itame Hada, Ko- Mokume Hada, well grained with jinie attached. There are clear Utsuri.
Shinogi ji: Itame Hada Mokume Hadae with Kitae Nagare.(Muku Kitae)
Hamon: Ko- Nie Deki, Sugaha base. There are Ashi and Yo
The Nioikuchi is soft.


Koshirae:
Tsuba: Maru gata – iron . Sakura blossom & pattern in openwork -sukashi style

Fuchi & Kashira : Brass - Carved with the house crest of Toyotomi Clan.
Kamon of Paulownia 5-3 (五三桐go-san kiri),

Menuki: Fan in gold shakudo

Saya: Black urushi

Shirasaya with Sayagaki:
"Joshu(same as the Yamashiro) Ryo Hisanobu
Ubu Nakago Mumei, Ryo Hisanobu is a son of Ryokai.
There are Shirake Utsuri. The Nioikuchi feels moist.
The blade is typical of this school.
The blade length is 67.11cm. "
By Mr. Tanobe (Tanobe Michihiro – Tanzan – one of the “3 Mountains” of the NBTHK)

A$32,500

Ryo Hisanobu了久信 is the son of Yamashiro Ryokai and the father of Nobukuni first generation
Ryokai is descended from the Rai school.
He raised many sword smiths as well as his son.
Hisanobu’s blades are remarkably similar to Ryokai’s blades.
This is a magnificent blade dating back to 1308-1310.
It is extremely rare to see a blade over 716 years old that is both Ubu Nakago and Shobu-Tsukuri style.

This superb sword was first registered in Showa 26 (1951) 3rd Month 31st day, the first year that the Sword Registration System began.
Because many treasures from prominent families such as former feudal lords, were registered in this year, they are referred to as Daimyo registrations.
An indication that the swords were in the possession of the former owners for a very long time.

***Please refer this Link for full details, too much to list here***-

Ref Markus Sesko:
https://markussesko.com/2016/05/16/kantei-4-yamashiro-25-ryokai-%E4%BA%86%E6%88%92-school-2/
This actual blade is listed / published. Picture 5.

Ryôkai was succeeded by his son Hisanobu (久信) who is – due to the fact that he often signed just with the prefix “Ryô” – is mostly referred to as Ryô Hisanobu (了久信).

Not many works of Hisanobu are still in existence. This sword being a rare unsigned example.

There is speculation that Ryo might have mostly worked for his father. This is also supported by the fact of inconsistent signature style of the characters for Ryôkai. This might go hand in hand with the tradition that Hisanobu signed himself with “Ryôkai” one or two years after his father had died, according to the Goto Tebiki Shô (如手引抄).
This work was published in the Kan´ei era (寛永, 1624-1644), more than 300 years after Hisanobu’s active period.

The known date signatures of Ryô Hisanobu, which are very rare, span just from Kagen (嘉元, 1303-1306) to Enkyô (延慶, 1308-1311).

Ryô Hisanobu was succeeded by his son Nobuhisa (信久) who lived, according to the Kotô Meizukushi Taizen, from Bunna one (文和, 1352) to Ôei 26 (応永, 1419).