Nihonto Club

This group was founded by Shodai Nobukuni.

Shodai/Nidai Nobukuni

There is a difference how first two generations of Nobukuni are defined by various sources. This is most likely due to lack of dated examples of Nobukuni (the earliest was made in the Enbun era (1356). There are a few extant works of Nobukuni without dates and of which workmanship looks older than that of the Enbun Era [1]). It is noted by most sources that the first generation of Nobukuni worked in two distinct styles, one resembles Ryōkai style, while another resembles Sōshū [2]. One opinion says that Nobukuni Shodai was the student of Sadamune. Other opinion says that it was Nobukuni Nidai who was Sadamune's student, while Shodai is in fact Ryōkai Nobuhisa who changed his name to Nobukuni [3]. The second opinion explains differences in style. Accordingly there are several opinions of relationship to Hisanobu, Nobukuni being his son or grandson. Nihonto Club relies on the version of Nobukuni Nidai being Sadamune's student. Attribution of different generations of Nobukuni to the records in Hawley has been a challenge. One should be careful with references to Nidai Nobukuni as in many cases it may mean 3rd generation.

A number of Yamamura school smiths signed Nobukuni due to close connections with Yamashiro Nobukuni. It still has to be identified if they were double-listed as Yamashiro smiths.

After Bunmei (1469), the Yamashiro smiths moved to other lands. This was at the time of the Ōnin Civil War (1467-1477) in which the inner parts of Kyōtō became scorched earth due to the ravages of the war. This was said to be a time when many people fled the difficulties and moved to other kuni. It is thought that the Yamashiro swordsmiths also searched for a peaceful place in which to live and make swords [4].

See also Tanobe Michihiro's Nihonto Wo Miru (translation by Markus Sesko) for observations on stroke direction in the signatures of Nobukuni.

(to be continued)

References