Hamabe Toshinori
浜部寿格
Description
Background and Training
Hamabe Toshinori, whose real name was Hamabe Kurōzaemon, was born in Tottori, Inaba Province (present-day Tottori City). He is said to have traveled and studied swordsmithing in Musashi, Bizen, and Osaka before establishing himself at home.
Title and Domain Service
In 1785 he received the title of Mino no Kami, and later served as an official swordsmith to the Tottori domain. He trained numerous disciples and became known as the representative swordsmith of Inaba Province.
Style
His work is characterized by an unusually robust construction, with a blade thickness exceeding one centimeter even on standard-length swords; pieces carved with a deep bō-hi groove nonetheless feel notably heavy in the hand. His tempering favored a straight nioi-based hamon over a finely forged, beautifully clear ko-itame grain. He is noted for the high skill with which he finished such unconventional, heavy construction without flaw.
Reputation
He is sometimes cited as one of the stylistic forerunners of the celebrated late-Edo swordsmith Minamoto Kiyomaro, and is ranked among the superior makers of the shinshintō period. A surviving dated work shows him still actively forging in Edo in 1787 at age 43, evidence of a long and productive career.