Title:
鮫皮研出鞘大小拵 Blades and Mountings for a Pair of Swords (Daishō)
Swordsmith:
Sword (katana) blade inscribed by Muramasa (Japanese, active 16th century)
Swordsmith:
Short sword (wakizashi) blade inscribed by Nobukuni (Japanese, active late 14th–early 15th century)
Fittings maker:
Knife handle (kozuka) and grip ornaments (menuki) attributed to Gotō Tokujō (Japanese, 1550–1631, fifth-generation Gotō master) by Gotō Mitsuyoshi
Fittings maker:
Sword guard (tsuba) inscribed by Gotō Mitsuyoshi (Shinjō) (Japanese, 1780–1843, fifteenth-generation Gotō master)
Fittings maker:
Sword-hilt washer and pommel (fuchigashira) by Yokoya Munekuni (Japanese, active 19th century)
Date:
sword (katana) blade, 16th century; short sword (wakizashi) blade, late 14th–early 15th century; mountings, 19th century
Culture:
Japanese
Medium:
Steel, wood, lacquer, ray skin (same), thread, copper-gold alloy (shakudō), gold
Dimensions:
L. of sword (katana) 34 1/4 in. (87 cm); L. of sword (katana) blade 25 5/32 in. (63.9 cm); D. of sword (katana) blade curvature 19/32 (1.5 cm); L. of sword (katana) scabbard 28 in. (71.1 cm); L. of short sword (wakizashi) 26 11/16 in. (67.8 cm); L. of short sword (wakizashi) blade 13 15/16 in. (35.4 cm); D. of short sword (wakizashi) blade curvature 3/16 in. (0.45 cm); L. of short sword (wakizashi) scabbard 20 1/2 (52.1 cm); L. of knife (kozuka) for short sword (wakizashi) mounting L. 8 5/8 in. (21.9 cm)
Classification:
Swords
Credit Line:
The Howard Mansfield Collection, Gift of Howard Mansfield, 1936
Accession Number:
36.120.412a, b, .413a–c