Kunisuke Katana

Kunisuke was one of the most well-known swordsmiths in Osaka during the early Edo period. There were three generations of Kunisuke in total. Since the second-gen was active between the first and the third-gen Kunisuke, he was also called Naka Kawachi. Kawachi is the short term of Kawachi no Kami, the honorable title given to this swordsmith, and Naka means the middle in Japanese.

He was the son of the Shodai Kunisuke but few or no details as to the exact date of his birth, the year of his recognition as a title holder of this smith name, etc, are known. The only date that appears with some certainty is that he passed away in the 11th year of Genroku or 1698.

Naka-Kawachi made both katana and wakizashi but he left very few tantô. His jigane is a wonderful ko-itame, while the hamon exhibits brilliant chôji patterns containing jûka and kobushi-gata (fist patterned) variations with the nioiguchi of the clearest nature. There are many ashi as well as some ko-nie contained in his hamon. There are also suguba works, although only on a very limited number of blades. The popular name kobushi-gata is given to his chôjivariation because it has an appearance of multiple fists put together in a clump.

That being said, however, it is important to note that no matter how wild or exceptionally irregular hamon patterns Naka-Kawachi (???) might have tempered in the upper areas of the blade, he always started his hamon with a long and straight yakidashi and ended it in a smooth curve with a ko-maru bôshi. We call his type of yakidashi the Osaka type of yakidashi that starts out straight and smoothly becomes notare.

The Nidai also seldom had horimono on his works, and even bô-hi can only rarely be found. The nakago is generally in an ordinary length with a markedly narrow ha-agari-kurijiri tip and ô-sujikai yasurimei. In the case of Naka-Kawachi he occasionally added keshô-yasuri to finish some of his nakago.

Dr. Kunzan had written “Jyo-jyo”, on the sayagaki which is very rare.
The blade is 76.4cm long, with great thickness and powerfulness. It is long enough, heavy enough, a powerful work.
This sword is on many books like Osaka Shinto Zufu,
Nihonto Taikan, Shinto Taikan, Kanzan Token Koza, Nihonto Meito 100 Sen, etc.

The Koshira is in top condition with Fittings in shakudo nanako with a black laquer saya with bamboo makeie.