yukihid

Ubu Shimada Soshu Dambira
Early Billowing Soshu Yakiba

Genroku Higo Mounts with Edo period fittings

This piece sat in it's very fine old Genroku era Higo Saya until the mounting was rebuilt. Edo period brass Fuchi/Gashira and Kojiri with Dragon Menuki of Kirin were used to produce a newly refurbished mount. The iron Tsuba is of the Heianjo school.

NOTE: The central Kaji of this time was Tsunahiro of the Yamamura Ke.
There were a number of Kaji of the Shimada Ke
of Suruga who moved to Odawara. As for the smiths of the Shimada Ke,
they established marital relationships or teacher/pupil relationships
with the Tsunahiro Ke, and there were deep relationships
among the Soshu Kaji of this time.

Shimada at the beginning. This is an Ubu Soshu master work that has been polished down over the years.
Once a strong, thick Dambira, the Bungi-era Horimono now all gone.
Still the piece retains its full validity as a weapon.
Correct Sugata, Nakago, Horimono, steel, and
intricate Soshu Billowing Yakiba tells us this is the very beginning
of the school, at the time of Muramasa, and therefore the work
of the Shimada founding master, Yoshisuke.
Yoshisuke was a smith in his prime around Kosho (1455-1457).
The family of the Shimada Kaji, a considerably
large number of smiths, were quite technically skilled. This technical excellance would satisfy the collectors
who prize and study swords.
This piece infers the higher ranked kaji of the Soshu Den, and at first
glance looks like a work of Masamune.
See: Suruga Shimada & the Bungi Triad. Read about MASAMUNE and his school.