Naginata (signed Ki no Sukemitsu, Sakon no Shogen, of Yoshioka in Bishu; dated the eleventh month of 1320)

A Rare Unaltered Kamakura Naginata

The Naginata (signed Ki no Sukemitsu of Yoshioka in Bishu, dated 1320) (薙刀〈銘一備州吉岡住左近将監紀助光／元応二年〈庚申〉十一月日〉) is a Kamakura-period naginata by Sukemitsu of the Yoshioka Ichimonji school, location not disclosed (private collection), which in 1953 was designated a National Treasure.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs records one blade 56.7 centimetres long with a curvature of 2.7 centimetres and 3.3 centimetres wide at the base, dated 1320, first designated under the old system in 1931.

According to the Agency, it was handed down in the Maeda family of Kaga.

The Blade

According to the Agency, it has a clipped-back ridge, a three-faced back, a tip that does not widen and a slight curve. The steel is a tight fine grain with irregular reflections. The temper line is a clove pattern with a few half-circles, becoming straighter from the striking area up, full of legs and leaves and generally tight.

The point pattern is small and round, turning back somewhat long. Naginata grooves with companion grooves run on both faces, ending square. The tang is unaltered, with a chestnut-shaped end, straight file marks and two peg holes, with a long signature and date in fairly large characters on both faces.

What to Look For

The Agency notes that its broad blade with a tip that does not widen is typical of naginata fashionable in the Kamakura period; few unaltered Kamakura naginata survive, and its inscription is also of documentary value.

Notice its form and the long signature and date cut boldly on both faces.

Visiting the Naginata (signed Ki no Sukemitsu of Yoshioka in Bishu, dated 1320)

It is privately owned and its location is not disclosed; no official information on viewing could be found.