Bizen Tameji

Tameji was a swordsmith active from the late Heian through the early Kamakura period in Aoe, Bitchu Province (present-day areas around Aoe in Kurashiki and Okayama cities, Okayama Prefecture), and one of the representative swordsmiths of the Ko-Aoe school (Aoe school)—characterized by the shared character "Tsugu" (次) found in names such as Morijitsugu, Tameji, Sadasuke, Tsuneji, and Sukeji. The Aoe school was a leading swordsmithing community of Bitchu Province, flourishing from the late Heian through the Nanboku-chō period, and served as the center of Bitchu sword culture with distinctive features: precisely-grained jigane known as sumihada (clear skin) and chirimen-hada (crepe skin), and hamon in suguha style with small midare and small chōji, characterized by gentle, small rounded returns.

Tameji's blades exemplify the Aoe school's refined, pellucid jigane and composed hamon at a high standard. The jigane displays densely packed small itame patterns and exhibits the distinctive texture known as sumihada and chirimen-hada with a bluish tone. The hamon is primarily composed of gentle work in suguha style with small midare and small chōji, returning in small rounded patterns, with the characteristic Aoe school features of reversed ashi and reversed chōji appearing in later Mid-Aoe works.

Tameji is most renowned for the National Treasure Tachi signed Tameji (nicknamed Kitsunegasaki, held at the Yoshikawa Historical Museum). It is transmitted that the Yoshikawa clan employed this blade in the attack on Kajiwara Kagetoki in Shoji 2 (1200)—the Battle of Kitsunegasaki—and it is recognized as a representative signed tachi of the Aoe school.

The configuration (taihaiI) generally exhibits the refined, slender tachi form characteristic of early Kamakura, with deep curvature at the base (koshi-zori). The signatures are cut as "Tameji" in signed works, with production in Bitchu (Aoe), not Bizen.

Today, Tameji (Aoe) works include the National Treasure Tachi signed Tameji (Kitsunegasaki) and numerous Important Cultural Property designations. Tameji remains an indispensable swordsmith in discussing the flourishing of the Bitchu Aoe school and serves as an important reference point in Kamakura period sword scholarship.