{"product_id":"antique-japanese-katana-sword-with-tombo-dragonfly-menuki-sansui-landscape-tsuba","title":"Antique Japanese Katana Sword with Tombo Dragonfly Menuki \u0026 Sansui Landscape Tsuba","description":"\u003csection class=\"product\"\u003e\u003cheader\u003e\u003c\/header\u003e\n\u003csection id=\"specs\"\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSignature (Mei):\u003c\/strong\u003e Mumei (unsigned) — both sides\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePeriod:\u003c\/strong\u003e Edo Period — \u003cem\u003ejidai-tō\u003c\/em\u003e (period sword) in period koshirae\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMounting:\u003c\/strong\u003e Period koshirae — iron sansui-zu tsuba with zogan accents; dragonfly (\u003cem\u003etombo\u003c\/em\u003e) menuki in shakudō and gilt; karakusa brass fuchi-kashira; brass habaki; dark leather tsuka-maki\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBlade Length (Nagasa):\u003c\/strong\u003e 63.0 cm\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCurvature (Sori):\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.8 cm\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMekugi-ana:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eShape:\u003c\/strong\u003e Shinogi-zukuri, chu-kissaki\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMotohaba:\u003c\/strong\u003e 28.8 mm \/ \u003cstrong\u003eSakihaba:\u003c\/strong\u003e 19.3 mm\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMotokasane:\u003c\/strong\u003e 6.2 mm \/ \u003cstrong\u003eSakikasane:\u003c\/strong\u003e 4.8 mm\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBlade Weight (naked):\u003c\/strong\u003e 575 g \/ \u003cstrong\u003eWeight with saya:\u003c\/strong\u003e 819 g\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTotal koshirae length:\u003c\/strong\u003e 94.0 cm \/ \u003cstrong\u003eSaya:\u003c\/strong\u003e 72.3 cm \/ \u003cstrong\u003eTsuka:\u003c\/strong\u003e 21.0 cm\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eHamon:\u003c\/strong\u003e Notare-gunome with active nie along the habuchi\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBoshi:\u003c\/strong\u003e Composed ko-maru turnback into chu-kissaki\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSuitable for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Iai \/ Battō \/ Tameshigiri\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/section\u003e\n\u003csection id=\"description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis handsome \u003cstrong\u003eEdo-period Katana\u003c\/strong\u003e is an unsigned (\u003cem\u003emumei\u003c\/em\u003e) \u003cem\u003ejidai-tō\u003c\/em\u003e — a genuine period blade presented in its original period koshirae — that combines a well-preserved and lively blade with a koshirae of notable artistic distinction. Measuring \u003cstrong\u003e63.0 cm\u003c\/strong\u003e with a full, confident \u003cstrong\u003e1.8 cm sori\u003c\/strong\u003e, the geometry is that of a practical and well-balanced Edo-period katana: a relatively broad \u003cem\u003emotohaba\u003c\/em\u003e of 28.8 mm tapering to a clean \u003cem\u003echu-kissaki\u003c\/em\u003e, the \u003cem\u003eshinogi-zukuri\u003c\/em\u003e profile carried with authority along a blade whose proportions feel natural in the hand. The two \u003cem\u003emekugi-ana\u003c\/em\u003e in the well-aged \u003cem\u003enakago\u003c\/em\u003e speak to a genuine history of use and mounting changes across the centuries, and at 575 g naked, the blade sits within the handling range that made Edo-period katana equally suited to \u003cem\u003eiai\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ebattō\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003etameshigiri\u003c\/em\u003e practice.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cem\u003ehamon\u003c\/em\u003e is the blade's most compelling feature and the source of its immediate visual appeal. A vigorous \u003cstrong\u003enotare-gunome\u003c\/strong\u003e moves along the entire cutting edge with rhythmic energy — broad, rounded peaks rising and falling in an undulating sequence that fills the \u003cem\u003eyakiba\u003c\/em\u003e with life and light. The \u003cem\u003ehabuchi\u003c\/em\u003e is populated throughout with active \u003cem\u003enie\u003c\/em\u003e, the martensitic crystals catching the light in bright, shifting points that animate the boundary between hard and soft steel. Near the \u003cem\u003emachi\u003c\/em\u003e, the hamon opens from a composed \u003cem\u003eyakidashi\u003c\/em\u003e before developing into its full notare-gunome character — a sign of deliberate, controlled tempering rather than hurried production. The \u003cem\u003eji\u003c\/em\u003e is dark and well-forged, providing the ideal contrasting ground against which the bright hamon asserts itself. The \u003cem\u003eboshi\u003c\/em\u003e completes the tempering with a neat \u003cem\u003eko-maru\u003c\/em\u003e turnback into the \u003cem\u003echu-kissaki\u003c\/em\u003e, the activity continuing cleanly to the very tip of the blade.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOsaka Prefecture registration No. 96353, issued in Shōwa 58 (1983), confirms this blade's full legal status for ownership and use within Japan and internationally.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/section\u003e\n\u003csection id=\"koshirae\"\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eKoshirae Details\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe period koshirae of this sword is an ensemble of considerable character, unified by a naturalistic aesthetic that speaks eloquently of Edo-period sensibility — an appreciation for the beauty of the natural world rendered through the metalworker's and lacquerer's arts. The ensemble's defining iconographic statement is its extraordinary \u003cstrong\u003edragonfly (\u003cem\u003etombo\u003c\/em\u003e) menuki\u003c\/strong\u003e, and every other element of the koshirae supports and frames this remarkable choice.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cstrong\u003etsuba\u003c\/strong\u003e is a large, heavily worked iron piece in a rounded \u003cem\u003ekaku-mokko\u003c\/em\u003e form, its entire surface given over to a richly atmospheric \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003esansui-zu\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e (mountain and water landscape). Pine trees, distant mountain silhouettes, and what appears to be a small boat among reeds are rendered in \u003cem\u003ekebori\u003c\/em\u003e (hairline engraving) and subtle relief against the deeply patinated iron ground, with scattered accents of gold and copper \u003cem\u003ezogan\u003c\/em\u003e (inlay) punctuating the composition. This is not the abbreviated decorative gesture of a workaday tsuba but a considered landscape composition — a miniature ink painting translated into iron by a smith who understood both the artistic tradition he was invoking and the technical demands of working it into metal. The single \u003cem\u003ekozuka hitsu\u003c\/em\u003e interrupts the composition naturally, and the overall iron surface has aged to a magnificent deep black that sets off the landscape's fine detail.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cstrong\u003emenuki\u003c\/strong\u003e are the heart of this koshirae's identity. Rendered in \u003cem\u003eshakudō\u003c\/em\u003e with generous gilt detailing, the paired \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003etombo\u003c\/em\u003e (dragonfly)\u003c\/strong\u003e figures are depicted with exceptional naturalistic fidelity — wings fully spread and traced with vein-like precision, bodies modeled in the round with careful attention to the insect's distinctive form. In Japanese warrior culture, the dragonfly carried deep symbolic resonance: called \u003cem\u003ekachimushi\u003c\/em\u003e — \"victory insect\" — it was prized by samurai precisely because it moves only forward, never retreating. To carry dragonfly menuki was to carry an invocation of forward momentum, relentless advance, and ultimate victory. The prominence and quality of these menuki transforms an already distinguished koshirae into one with genuine iconographic and symbolic weight.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cstrong\u003efuchi-kashira\u003c\/strong\u003e set is worked in warm brass with bold \u003cem\u003ekarakusa\u003c\/em\u003e (arabesque scrollwork) engraved into the surface — confident, flowing line work that provides elegant visual continuity between tsuka and blade. The \u003cstrong\u003ehabaki\u003c\/strong\u003e is a single-piece brass collar finished with tight horizontal \u003cem\u003eyasurime\u003c\/em\u003e ribbing, its warm golden surface providing a luminous transition between the iron tsuba and the blade above. The \u003cstrong\u003etsuka\u003c\/strong\u003e is wrapped in dark brown leather (\u003cem\u003ekawa\u003c\/em\u003e) in the classic \u003cem\u003ehishi-maki\u003c\/em\u003e diamond pattern over white \u003cem\u003esame\u003c\/em\u003e (ray skin), the leather having aged to a rich espresso tone that speaks of genuine period use. The nodules of the same are visible through each diamond aperture, and the overall handle presents with the honest, well-worn authority of a sword that has been handled and carried across the centuries.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/section\u003e\n\u003csection id=\"school-history\"\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eHistorical Context: The Edo-Period Jidai-Tō\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe term \u003cem\u003ejidai-tō\u003c\/em\u003e — \"period sword\" — designates an antique Japanese blade forged during one of the recognized historical periods of Japanese swordsmanship, most commonly the Edo era (1603–1868). During the long Pax Tokugawa, when the practical requirements of battlefield warfare gave way to the cultural imperatives of a peacetime samurai class, the sword's role transformed profoundly. A blade like the present example — well-proportioned, beautifully tempered, and dressed in a koshirae of artistic refinement — represents the mature Edo ideal: a weapon of genuine capability that was simultaneously a vehicle for aesthetic and philosophical expression.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe unsigned (\u003cem\u003emumei\u003c\/em\u003e) status of this blade is entirely normal for Edo-period work, where many accomplished smiths produced blades that were later shortened (\u003cem\u003esuriage\u003c\/em\u003e), or where tangs were simply left unsigned as a matter of workshop practice. What matters to the eye and the hand is the quality visible in the steel itself — and here, the lively \u003cem\u003enotare-gunome\u003c\/em\u003e hamon with its active \u003cem\u003enie\u003c\/em\u003e, the dark and well-forged \u003cem\u003eji\u003c\/em\u003e, and the composed \u003cem\u003eboshi\u003c\/em\u003e all speak to a smith of genuine ability working within a confident tradition. Paired with a koshirae whose dragonfly menuki and landscape tsuba elevate it well above the ordinary, this sword offers the collector and practitioner a complete Edo-period experience: authentic blade, authentic mountings, and an authentic piece of Japanese history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/section\u003e\n\u003c\/section\u003e","brand":"Tokyo Nihonto","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56671403147588,"sku":"KATANA71","price":3200.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0753\/4080\/8516\/files\/Katana71_155K_0038_GenerativeFill3.jpg?v=1776438906","url":"https:\/\/tokyo-nihonto.com\/products\/antique-japanese-katana-sword-with-tombo-dragonfly-menuki-sansui-landscape-tsuba","provider":"Tokyo Nihonto","version":"1.0","type":"link"}