A beautiful “Kaga” Katsukuni katana. This sword is 26 5/8″ long with a finely ingrained poem on one side and cutting test on the other. The poem has been researched but is extremely difficult to translate.  Even Japanese people born and raised in Japan can not translate this with any certanty.  The poem in kanji up to know has been translated to “Se no tame fuku I Nari fu kyo shim ba tai to Jo shin kyo kan fu tame Tsuyu yo shin tie fu” but much more research must be done understand what it is saying.  The cutting test on the other side is much easier to understand and reads “shitotsudo chichiwari saidan” It reads thru breast one human body cut.  This clearly indicates that this sword was used and tested on a person.  These types of test generally were only done for a short period of time during the Edo era. The original  owner of this old sword must have been interesting Samurai. A poem on one side and a cutting test on the other makes this Katana very unique. The koshirae is an outstanding satsuma set of mounts in the handachi style. The tsuka is a lacquered leather wrap resembling baleen with a uniform Same underneath that has gold lacquer over it. Everything is finished in black to match. It speaks Satsuma Samurai through and through.  The lacquered saya is finished in a stone texture. The tsuba is an open work iron sukashi style. The kojiri matches the rest of the Handachi mounts and is longish. The mounts are very important and are not common so even if you are a new collector please keep this in mind.  More knowledgeable collectors understand how important these mounts are. To begin with the hamon was created in a brilliant Sanbon-sugi stlye reminiscent of Kanemoto work. The temper is a uniform 3 cedar style. There is ji-nie as well as chikei, inazuma and kinsuji. It is maru with hakekake at the boshi tip as well. The hada is a long running itame with mokume and masame can be seen. A truely beautiful example of a 3 cedar style hamon. Normally associated with the Mino but this sword is a Kaga piece with wonderful hataraki. All in all a stupendous complete package for the collector.

This is what Fujishiro has say about this smith:
KATSUKUNI NIDAI [GENROKU 1688 KAGA] SHINTÔ CHÛJÔSAKU
He is the chakushi of Iyo no Daijô (above), and both his ji and hada are well arranged in comparison to the shodai, and there is also suguba. He died in Hôei Ninen (1705).
Signatures: KAGA JÛ DARANI TACHIBANA KATSUKUNI
KAGA JÛ TACHIBANA KATSUKUNI
Plate I: KAGA JÛ DARANI TACHIBANA KATSUKUNI