Miyairi Akihira

Miyairi Akihira was a swordsmith born in Sakaki, Nagano Prefecture, who represents the Shōwa era. Because he later changed his signature to 'Yukihira', he is also widely known as Miyairi Yukihira. His real name was Miyairi Kenichi. He was born in Taishō 2 (1913) and died in Shōwa 52 (1977). The Miyairi family had worked as smiths, as a family trade in Sakaki, since the generation of his grandfather. Akihira, raised in that household, moved to Tokyo in Shōwa 12 (1937), entered the Japanese Sword Forging Training Institute led by swordsmith Kurihara Hikosaburō Akihide, and began his full-scale career in sword making. In Shōwa 15 (1940), at the New Works Japanese Sword Exhibition, he received the President's Prize under the signature 'Akihira', and his skill was publicly recognized at an early stage. Regarding the signature, the 'Akihira' he initially used was changed to 'Yukihira' in Shōwa 48 (1973) in his later years; the two refer to the same person.

After the war, Miyairi Akihira became the central figure leading the revival of the devastated sword-making field. From Shōwa 30 (1955), at the art judging sessions of the Society for the Preservation of Japanese Art Swords, he repeatedly received the highest evaluations, including the Special Prize, demonstrating the foremost ability among modern swordsmiths. In Shōwa 38 (1963) he was certified as a holder of Important Intangible Cultural Property, the so-called Living National Treasure. This was the second honor in the field of sword making, and it firmly established Akihira's position in the modern sword world. He also devoted effort to passing on his craft. Many swordsmiths, including Ōsumi Toshihira and Kawachi Kunihira, emerged from his school, and the Miyairi school formed a major current in postwar Japanese sword making.

In style, he was most proficient in the Sōshū-den. He deeply studied famous swords of past and present, such as the Nanbokuchō-period master Shizu Saburō Kaneuji and the Bakumatsu-period master Minamoto Kiyomaro, and sublimated the results into his own forging. He fired vivid, brilliant midare with lively nie, and his jigane is finely forged and beautiful. His work is characterized by a dignity backed by study of old famous blades. The bold yet solid Sōshū-den works were highly valued as modern blades bearing the dignity of old works.

Miyairi Akihira is regarded as one of the foremost modern swordsmiths. He not only left behind outstanding masterworks himself, but his presence also stands out for raising many master smiths and exerting an enormous influence on the modern sword world.