* Image is for illustrative purposes only.Kyowa Era
享和（きょうわ）
Kyowa (1801-1804) was a short era of the late Edo period, following Kansei and preceding Bunka. In sword history it falls within the run-up to the shinshinto era. Suishinshi Masahide, regarded as the founder of shinshinto, was at this point still working in the idiom of the Osaka shinto smiths such as Tsuda Sukehiro and Inoue Shinkai; only later did he advocate the "sword restoration theory" calling for a return to koto methods. His school produced Taikei Naotane and Hosokawa Masayoshi.
Description
Placing the Kyowa era
Kyowa (1801-1804) was a short era of the late Edo period, following Kansei and preceding Bunka. It is rarely discussed on its own in sword history; rather, it sits within the period in which the transition from the shinto to the shinshinto idiom was being prepared.
The working years of Suishinshi Masahide
Suishinshi Masahide (1750-1825), regarded as the founder of shinshinto, forged blades for roughly fifty years, from the Anei era through the Bunsei era. In his earlier years — spanning the Tenmei, Kansei and Kyowa eras — he took the Osaka shinto smiths such as Tsuda Sukehiro and Inoue Shinkai as his ideal, producing toran-midare and suguha-toned hamon. During Kyowa itself, Masahide was still working within this Osaka-oriented manner.
From the study of old traditions to the restoration theory
Masahide went on to study the styles of the Yamato, Soshu and Mino traditions, and in his later years advocated a "sword restoration theory" calling for a return to koto methods, taking up the Bizen tradition as well. The Kyowa era falls along the path toward that fuller engagement with the older traditions.
Formation of the school
Masahide's school produced smiths such as Taikei Naotane and Hosokawa Masayoshi. These students went on to form the mainstream of the shinshinto era through to the end of the Edo period, so the activity of the Suishinshi school around the Kyowa years helped set the direction of later sword history.
Characteristics of This Era
- Kyowa (1801-1804) is a short late-Edo era falling between Kansei and Bunka
- It sits in the middle of Suishinshi Masahide's working span, from Anei to Bunsei
- Around Kyowa, Masahide worked in the idiom of Osaka shinto smiths such as Tsuda Sukehiro and Inoue Shinkai
- Toran-midare and suguha-toned hamon characterise Masahide's work at this stage
- It lies along the path toward his later "sword restoration theory", as he studied the Yamato, Soshu and Mino traditions
- His school produced Taikei Naotane and Hosokawa Masayoshi, who formed the mainstream of the shinshinto era