* Image is for illustrative purposes only.Gassan Sadakatsu
月山貞勝
Description
Gassan Sadakatsu and the Gassan School
Gassan Sadakatsu was a swordsmith born in Osaka in the 2nd year of Meiji (1869). He was the eldest son of Gassan Sadaichi I, who was appointed an Imperial Household Artist. From childhood, Sadakatsu learned sword-making and sword-blade carving from his father, Gassan Sadaichi I.
The Tradition of Ayasugi-hada
The Gassan school is an old school known for forging a distinctive wave-like pattern called ayasugi-hada in the grain of the steel base (jigane). Its origins trace back to Mount Gassan in Dewa Province, present-day Yamagata Prefecture. The Gassan family moved to Osaka in the early modern period, and Gassan Sadaichi I worked to revive this ayasugi-hada. Sadakatsu inherited his father's techniques and upheld this tradition. He was highly regarded not only for sword-making but also as a master of sword-blade carving, known for carving dragons, Fudō Myōō, and other figures onto blades.
Gyobutsu, Military Swords and Succession
Sadakatsu was active from the late Meiji period into the early Shōwa period. Under commission from the Imperial Household Ministry, he forged swords for the imperial collection, gyobutsu, as well as military swords. Among the many smiths trained in his school was Gassan Sadaichi II (given name Noboru), who later became a holder of an Important Intangible Cultural Property and a Living National Treasure. Sadakatsu died in Shōwa 18 (1943), but his skill and the ayasugi-hada tradition were passed on to his son, Gassan Sadaichi II, and continue into the present-day Gassan school.