Kinmichi

Japanese: 金道 - きんみち

Year of death: December 11, 6th year of the Kan'ei period (January 24, 1630)
Year of birth: Unknown A swordsmith in Kyoto in the Momoyama and early Edo periods. The son of Seki blacksmith Kanemichi from Mino (Gifu Prefecture), he moved to Kyoto during the Bunroku period (1592-96) and made swords at Nishinotoin Ebisugawa. He received the title of Iga no Kami during the Bunroku period, and the oldest date seen on his works is 1581 (Tensho 9), with the latest being a sword donated to Nikko Toshogu Shrine dating to 1626 (Kan'ei 3). His younger brothers, Rai Kanemichi, Tanba no Kami Yoshimichi, and Etchu no Kami Masatoshi, formed the Sanpin school, with the Kanemichi family in particular lasting for 10 generations until the end of the Edo period. From the second generation onwards, he called himself the Sosho of Japanese Blacksmiths and acted as an intermediary with the Imperial Court to grant official titles to swordsmiths from all over the country, wielding great authority. The style of the sword is to forge blades with strong curved edges, modeled after the Shizu of Mino during the Nanboku-cho period, but what is distinctive is the curved, pointed tip (hamon) pattern on the blade, known as Sanshina boshi, and is a highlight of the school.

(Harada Kazutoshi)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

没年：寛永6.12.11(1630.1.24)
生年：生年不詳
桃山・江戸初期の京の刀工。美濃(岐阜県)の関鍛冶兼道の子で,文禄年中(1592～96)京に出て,西洞院夷川で作刀した。文禄年中に伊賀守を受領し,作品にみる年紀は天正9(1581)年が最も古く,日光東照宮に奉納した太刀の寛永3(1626)年が下る。弟に来金道,丹波守吉道,越中守正俊がいて三品派をなしたが,特に金道家は幕末まで10代を数える。2代目以降は日本鍛冶惣匠を名乗り,諸国の刀工の官名受領について朝廷との仲立ちを行い,絶大な権威を持った。作風は南北朝時代の美濃の志津をねらった沸の強い湾れ刃を焼くが,特徴的なのは湾れこんで先が尖って返る帽子(切先の刃文)で,三品帽子と呼ばれ,一派の見所となっている。

(原田一敏)

出典　朝日日本歴史人物事典：（株）朝日新聞出版朝日日本歴史人物事典について　情報

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