* Image is for illustrative purposes only.Rai Magotarō-saku
来孫太郎作
Also known as: Tachi signed Rai Magotarō-saku (with kaō), dated Shōō 5 (1292); tachi of the Tokugawa Art Museum
- Smith
- Rai Kunitoshi (signed as Rai Magotarō)
- Era
- Kamakura period
- Type
- Tachi
- Designation
- National Treasure
- Location
- Tokugawa Art Museum (Nagoya, Aichi)
Description
Rai Kunitoshi's Only "Magotarō" Signature
This tachi was made in the late Kamakura period by the swordsmith Rai Kunitoshi of Yamashiro Province (present-day Kyoto Prefecture). He carved the signature "Rai Magotarō-saku" together with a kaō (personal monogram). It bears a date of the thirteenth day of the eighth month of the jintatsu year of Shōō 5 (1292). The sword treatise Shokoku Kaji Yori records him as "Kunitoshi, Kyō, Rai Magotarō, in the reign of Emperor Fushimi," and among Rai Kunitoshi's signed works, this is the only known blade bearing the alternate name "Magotarō." It was designated an Important Cultural Property on 14 November 1953 (Shōwa 28) and a National Treasure on 20 March 1954 (Shōwa 29).
Craftsmanship
The blade is 77.3 cm long, with a sori of 3.0 cm and a nakago of 20.9 cm. It has a high torii-zori curve and a sturdy stance, clearly displaying the form of a late Kamakura tachi. The jigane is beautiful, and the hamon is ko-midare in the lower half and chū-suguha with a notare tendency in the upper half, giving the blade a dignified overall impression. Bearing both a dated inscription and a kaō, it is especially valuable as documentary evidence among Rai Kunitoshi's signed works, as it allows the year of its making to be fixed.
Provenance
The sword is said to have been used by Tokugawa Ieyasu and was thereafter handed down within the Owari Tokugawa family. It is now held by the Tokugawa Art Museum in Nagoya, where it is exhibited as one of the museum's representative tachi.
Significance
Rai Kunitoshi was a leading master of the Yamashiro Rai school, and he left numerous works designated National Treasures or Important Cultural Properties in both tachi and tantō forms. However, apart from this blade, no work using the alternate signature "Magotarō" has been confirmed, and it is regarded as a unique and valuable benchmark in the study of Rai Kunitoshi's career.
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