NIHONTO.COM:ABOUT SWORDS

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{INTRODUCTION} {MAJOR KOTO SCHOOLS} {DIAGRAMS AND TERMINOLOGY} {GLOSSARY}{ARTICLES}

THE YAMATO SUE-TEGAI SCHOOL

by Fred Weissberg 02/06

The first generation Kanenaga is known to be the founder of the Yamato Tegai School of sword making. This school got its name from the fact that its workshop was built in front of the gate Tegai-mon belonging to the Todaiji Temple in Nara. The Tegai School was founded by the smith, Kanenaga who worked around 1288-1293. The smiths of this school all used the same character for kane in their works. Some of the other smiths were Kanekiyo, Kanetsugu , Kanetoshi, and Kanemitsu. Some of the later smiths such as Kaneujimoved to Mino.

Of the smiths of this school, the first generation Kanenagaleft a fair number of signed examples of his work. Most have been greatly shortened with the two characters being found at the bottom of the nakago. The name Kanenaga was also used by succeeding generations of smiths.The works of the first generation Kanenaga are known to be the best that the Tegai School produced.

Toward the end of the Nanbokucho period, the school ceased to be active. With the beginning of the Muromachi period, however, it revived and began to once again prosper. This was the start of what is known as the Sue-Tegai School.

The workmanship of the Sue-Tegai School is difficult to distinguish from that of other Yamato Schools of the period. It might be said that swords made by the Sue-Tegai smiths show features generally common to late Yamato swords. Here are the basic characteristics of the Sue-Tegai School:

SUGATA:The shape of Sue Tegai works is what we have come to know as typical Yamato for the period. They are shinogi-zukuri and irori mune.The shinogi is high with a wide shinogi-haba . Shinogi-zukuri and shobu-zukuri shapes are found in wakizashi. In tanto, there is a narrow mihaba, a shortened nagasa, and a slightly rounded fukura. The sugata looks sharp. The kasane is thick, in spite of narrow mihaba.

HAMON:The temper line is narrow and tight. The hamon consists of nioi with some nie, but with little activity. O-midare, is seen on occasion.

BOSHI:Yakizume becomes rare compared with older Tegai blades. The standard ko-maru boshi is most common. The kaeri becomes longer than in older Tegai blades.

HADA:The fine ko-mokume ji-hada is mixed with masame-hada. There is little or no ji-nie present. The jigane is a bit hard and whitish in color.

NAKAGO:While, most of the surviving works are o-suriage with the original nakago lost, there are surviving examples with a mei, but they are rare.

{INTRODUCTION} {MAJOR KOTO SCHOOLS} {DIAGRAMS AND TERMINOLOGY} {GLOSSARY}{ARTICLES}