Blade and Mounting for a Short Sword (Wakizashi)

Blade inscribed by Kawachino Kamifujiwara Rai[...] Japanese
Grip ornament (menuki) inscribed by Kikuchi Tsunesada Japanese
Sword hilt collar (fuchi) inscribed by Yoshioka Tadatsugu Japanese

Not on view

Crushed abalone shells incorporated into the lacquer of this wakizashi scabbard give it a green, shimmering finish, offsetting the slightly raised, gilded cherry blossoms clustered near the tip. The engraved silver mounts feature Chinese dragons, swastika (manji) latticework, and peonies.

Blade and Mounting for a Short Sword (<i>Wakizashi</i>), Blade inscribed by Kawachino Kamifujiwara Rai[...] (Japanese, active 18th century), Steel, wood, lacquer, gold, abalone shell, iron, silver, copper-gold alloy (<i>shakudō</i>), copper, silk, Japanese

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