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SAKYŌNOSUKE YASUMITSU (YASUMITSU II) (ACTIVE 1421-44)
Court-style sword (kazaridachi) and scabbard
blade, 1421-44; mounts, 1750-1850Steel, lacquered wood, shakudō, gold, turquoise, enamel, ray skin, leather | 12.8 cm (Width) x 5.0 cm (Depth); 93.8 cm (Length) (whole object) | RCIN 62628
Elaborately mounted swords of this kind were purely ceremonial, carried by imperial courtiers and high-ranking samurai. The fifteenth-century blade was probably a family heirloom, with numerous fixing holes indicating that it has been remounted several times.
