Late Edo Japanese Tanto, incredible carving

An incredible Japanese Tanto (short sword), dating to the Late Edo period, masterfully carved with feuding Samurai.

The Tanto is of the usual export type encountered in the Late Edo period, with carved walrus tusk or deer antler Koshirae (scabbard).  The blade is of unusual construction, the Hada (grain of the sword) reflecting a Damascened (pattern-welded) steel rather than the typical Hamon (temper line) of a Nihonto blade.  Swords such as this were produced in the late Edo period, the vast majority being of poor steel and of very little artistic merit.  This is the finest sword of this type we have ever seen, possibly commissioned by a wealthy European.

The sword was made purely as an artistic piece, a fact exemplified by the presence of an all ivory Kozuka - the small utility knive fitted to the Saya.

The quality of the work on the Koshirae suggests that it was carried out by a master Netsuke carver, many of which are known to have practised in Tokyo at the end of the 19th Century.  The signature on the Nakago (tang) and the Koshirae appear to be in stylized seal-script, a signature technique also employed by contemporary Netsuke carvers, but uncommon on Nihonto.

Length: 15 inches.

Condition: Exceptional preservation.  The blade well polished and with no rust.  The Nakago uncleaned.  The Koshirae unrestored.

Provenance: Ex. R.A. collection, New York.

$1,600.00

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