Juyo Candidate | Hankei Dampira | See the Zuikan |
Hankei
Nagasa: one Shaku
two Sun four Bu. Itame with Masame - O-Mokume - having profuse Ji-Nie over strongly standing Hada. O-Midare in wide Nioi-Fukai with running Sunagashi having thick Nie and Ara-nie. Deep Boshi is Tsuki-agi where the Kaeri runs down the back. An extraordinarily high degree of excellence.
A superior and wonderful sword. Solid gold double
Habaki with Tokugawa Family Mon This was a long possession of the Utsunomiya Family of Omi Province. The reasons are
several. Hankei was from Mikawa, Iyeyasu's home
province. Scholarship has argued why such a great Gun smith should then make swords. Iyeyasu commanded him to revert to make guns for the Osaka Summer and Winter Campaigns. Hankei's work is rare, and according to the Japanese "very, very" rare. His group is small; his student, Hansho's work is rare and the work of Seikei almost never found. See Juyo Hansho Tanto
With Tokubetsu Kicho from Sho-wa 35, 1960, February 15th, Shira-saya and Tokugawa Gold double Habaki. |
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