Oshigata Help

[Thekirsh]

Recently acquired an O tanto and having translated the mei ( correctly I hope), i cannot get an exact match and was wondering if anyone has seen an example of this signing.

Mei reads - Higo no Kuni ju Enju Taro Munehiro.    Dated Tenpo , 7th year

Thanks Simon K

 

[Stephen]

MUNEHIRO (宗広), Tenpō (天保, 1830-1844), Higo – “Higo no Kuni Tamana-jū Dōtanuki Koyama Enju Tarō Munehiro” (肥後国玉名住同田貫小山延寿太郎宗広), “Higo Dōtanuki Enju Munehiro” (肥後同田貫延寿宗広), “Higo Dōtanuki Kazusa no Suke jūdai-chakuson Enju Tarō Munehiro saku” (肥後同田貫上総介拾代嫡孫延寿太郎 宗広作, “made by Enju Tarō Munehiro, 10th gen. Higo Dōtauki Kazusa no Suke”), “Higo Dōtanuki Munehiro” (肥後同田貫宗広), “Higo Dōtanuki Kōzuke no Suke jūdaison Enju Tarō Munehiro saku” (肥後同田貫上野介 拾代孫延寿太郎宗広作, “made by Enju Tarō Munehiro, 10th gen. Higo Dōtanuki Kazusa no Suke”), “Higo Dōtanuki Oyama Enju Tarō Fujiwara Munehiro” (肥後同田貫小山延寿太郎藤原宗広), “Higo Dōtanuki Enju Munehiro” (肥後同田貫延寿宗広), “Oyama Enju Tarō Fujiwara Munehiro” (小山延寿太郎藤原宗広), “Higo Dōtanuki Munehiro saku” (肥後同田貫宗広作), “Higo no Kuni Kikuchi Gotō Naohiro” (肥後国菊池後藤直広), real name Oyama Hisatarō (小山寿太郎, the first name also reads Jutarō or Toshitarō), student of Hideki Naomune (英記直宗), some sources list him also as student of Suishinshi Masahide (水心子正秀), he counted himself as 10th gen. Dōtanuki Kazusa no Suke and also signed with the name Naohiro (直広), he died in the fourth year of Meiji (明治, 1871), there exists a blade with the supplement “made at the age of 78,” very dense ko-itame, gunome-chōji in nioi-deki in Bizen style, also a ko-itame with a ko-gunome-chōji in ko-nie-deki, we know blades from the early Tenpō to the early Meiji era

[Mark]

Markus' book seems to list this guy in vol. 1 on page 420 toward the top of the page

 

edit: i see Stephen already added the reference

[Thekirsh]

Thanks Stephen and Mark,

Munehiro certainly had a few variations on his mei by the look of it.

I notice the Hiro kanji is different yet the few oshigata I have seen show the one used on my blade.

Simon K