* Image is for illustrative purposes only.The Kyohō Meibutsu-chō and the History of Japanese Sword Authentication
享保名物帳と刀剣鑑定の歴史
The Kyohō Meibutsu-chō (Kyohō Registry of Famous Swords), compiled by Honami Mitsutada in 1719 (Kyohō 4), is a historical reference work that remains the supreme authority in Japanese sword authentication to this day. It established a grading system for famous swords and became the normative document for sword valuation. This article explores its significance and the circumstances of its creation.
Description
The Honami Family and Sword Authentication as a Hereditary Profession
From the Muromachi period through the Edo period, the Honami family served as the supreme authority in sword culture, with their hereditary profession of sword authentication, polishing, and maintenance officially recognized by the shogunate. The lineage descended from founder Honami Myōhon served successive holders of supreme power—the Ashikaga shogunate, Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu—and maintained exclusive authority to issue provenance certificates (origami) for famous swords. The culmination of the family's authority was the Kyohō Meibutsu-chō, compiled by Honami Mitsutada in 1719 (Kyohō 4).
Contents and Structure of the Kyohō Meibutsu-chō
The Kyohō Meibutsu-chō records the signatures, provenance, form, and appraisal values (origami values) of famous swords that could be confirmed at that time. Over 200 celebrated blades, including those since lost in fires, were registered, beginning with the Five Swords Under Heaven (Dōjikiri Yasutsuha, Onimaru Kunitsuna, Mikazuki Munechika, Daitentai Mitsuteru, and Juzumaru Tsunetsugu). For each blade, the production region, smith's name, form, presence or absence of signature, successive owners, and current condition were recorded, making it one of the most important reference works for modern sword authentication.
The Origami System and Monetary Appraisal
The origami (appraisal certificate) issued by the Honami family was a public document certifying the authenticity and value of swords, and became the etymological origin of the term "origami-tsuki" (certified). Swords registered in the Meibutsu-chō received monetary appraisals (origami values). This monetary appraisal system was a pioneer in modern economic valuation of swords as assets and became the prototype for contemporary sword market values.
Daimyo Houses and the Politics of Famous Swords
In the era of the Kyohō Meibutsu-chō, the possession of famous swords served as an important political indicator of a daimyo's authority and status. Shogun Tokugawa Yoshimune ordered the Honami family to survey famous swords and compile a register. The presentation of famous swords from daimyo to the shogunate and the bestowal of famous swords from the shogunate to daimyo functioned as political ritual symbolizing the transfer of authority.
Lost Famous Swords—the Concept of Yakimi (Fire-Damaged Blades)
The Kyohō Meibutsu-chō also records yakimi (焼身)—famous swords whose blades were damaged by fire or warfare. That celebrated swords damaged in warfare such as the Honnō-ji Incident (1582) and the Siege of Osaka (1615) are recorded as maintaining their value as "famous swords" despite blade deformation and surface damage demonstrates a distinctive value system in Japanese sword authentication: the weight of provenance transcends physical condition.
Systematization of Sword Authentication Scholarship
The compilation of the Kyohō Meibutsu-chō was a revolutionary undertaking that reduced to writing and systematized sword authentication knowledge that had previously been transmitted through oral tradition and secret teaching. The systematic classification by production region, smith, and period; the standardization of terminology for describing form; and the quantification of monetary valuation all represented a historic transformation of sword studies from "secret art" to "academic discipline." This development continued through the proliferation of Shintō-period authentication and the flourishing of Shintōshintō-period sword research, ultimately becoming the distant source for the modern authentication system of the Japanese Sword and Art Preservation Society.
Characteristics of This Era
- Authority of the Origami System: The origami certificates issued by the Honami family possessed authority equivalent to legal documents and publicly guaranteed the authenticity and value of famous swords. The phrase 'origami-tsuki' (certified or guaranteed) remains part of contemporary Japanese.
- Visualization of Value Through Monetary Appraisal: The system of assigning monetary values (origami values) to famous swords made their economic asset value explicit and established a standard for price formation in the sword market.
- Treatment of Yakimi (Fire-Damaged Swords): The concept of yakimi—where fire-damaged blades retain their status as 'famous swords' despite material loss—exemplifies a distinctive value system in which the narrative and provenance of a sword transcend physical integrity.
- Establishment of the Five Swords Under Heaven: The Kyohō Meibutsu-chō effectively established the concept of the 'Five Swords Under Heaven,' formalizing the highest classification category for blades that continues to be referenced today.
- Systematic Classification by Origin, School, and Era: The reduction of traditional oral knowledge to written and numerical form represented a historical turning point in transforming sword authentication from 'secret art' to 'academic discipline.'
- Integration with Daimyo Politics: The possession and bestowal of famous swords functioned as political ritual among daimyo and between daimyo and the shogunate, institutionalizing a system in which swords operated as political symbols transcending their status as pure artworks.
- Influence on Subsequent Authentication Culture: The grading system, terminology, and evaluation criteria of the Kyohō Meibutsu-chō have been inherited from the late Edo period, through the Meiji period, into modern practice at the Japanese Sword and Art Preservation Society, maintaining its status as a normative document in Japanese sword authentication.