* Image is for illustrative purposes only.Shōhei Era
正平（しょうへい）
Shōhei (1346–1370) was a nengō of the Southern Court. It is known for the brief Shōhei Settlement of 1351–52, when the Southern Court's dating was briefly adopted in place of the Northern Court's, and for a Ko-Aoe tanto by Sadatsugu dated Shōhei 12 (1357), its inscription carved on the reverse of the tang.
Description
The Southern Court's Nengō "Shōhei"
Shōhei (正平) was a nengō used by the Southern Court at Yoshino. It ran from the twelfth month of 1346 (the Northern Court's Jōwa 2) to the seventh month of 1370 (Shōhei 25, the Northern Court's Ōan 3, when the era changed to Kentoku). The Southern Court emperors of the period were Go-Murakami and Chōkei.
The Shōhei Settlement
In the tenth month of 1351 (Kan'ō 2 in the Northern Court, Shōhei 6 in the Southern Court), Ashikaga Takauji submitted to the Southern Court, and an imperial envoy entered Kyoto. During this reunion the Northern Court's nengō was abolished and Shōhei was used throughout, but it collapsed after barely four months. In 1352 (Shōhei 7) the Northern Court's Kan'ō era was restored.
A Dated Tanto
The tanto attributed to "Bitchū-no-kuni-jū Ōsumi Gonnosuke Taira Sadatsugu," with the inscription 「正平十二年八月日作」 (Shōhei 12, eighth month, 1357), is extant. The maker's name is cut on the front of the tang and the Southern Court date on the reverse. The smith is held to be a Ko-Aoe master who served as a Gobankaji of Emperor Go-Toba, and this blade, bearing a date, is considered a benchmark work for Sadatsugu. It is a hira-zukuri, mitsu-mune tanto with itame mixed with mokume, a wide suguha, and a small amount of ko-chōji.
Characteristics of This Era
- The Southern Court nengō Shōhei (1346–1370)
- The Shōhei Settlement (1351–52), when the Northern Court's nengō was briefly abolished
- A Ko-Aoe tanto by Sadatsugu inscribed with a Southern Court date (Shōhei 12, 1357)