Koyama Munehira was the older brother of the famous smith Shinshinto Koyama Munetsugu. He worked around Bunsei period (1818) and like his brother he was a very versatile smith, including some works in the gunome-choji that Munetsugu is famous for. This is an excellent special order shinshinto tanto by Munehira, with the name of the individual who ordered it and I believe the additional inscription indicates it was forged at Ichinomiya. Nagasa is 22.7cm. The jihada is a fine, flowing itame-hada, with a wet appearance having lots of ji-nie. The hamon is suguha-based in nie-deki. In polish with current NBTHK kanteisho and a fine gold-foil habaki.

一宮午鍛治 – Forged at Ochinomiya
固山宗平作 – Koyama Munehira saku
呈進士氏 – Mr. Shinji

MUNEHIRA (宗平), 1st gen., Bunsei (文政, 1818-1830), Ōshū – “Munehira” (宗平), “Ōshū Shirakawa Abukuma-gawa-hotori ni oite Koyama Munehira kore o saku” (奥州白川於阿武隈川辺固山宗平作之, “made by Koyama Munehira at the bank of the Abukumagawa in Shirakawa in Mutsu province”), “Seishū Kuwana-jū Fujiwara Munehira” (勢州桑名住藤原宗平), “Tōto ni oite Kiyama Munehira saku” (於東都固山宗平作, “made by Koyama Munehira in the eastern capital [=Edo]”), “Munehira saku” (宗平作), “Koyama Munehira saku” (固山宗平作), real name Koyama Sōbei (固山宗兵衛), older brother of Koyama Munetsugu (固山宗次), he was born in Shirakawa (白川) in Mutsu/ Ōshū province and worked later also in Edo and in Kuwana, gō Hakuryūshi (白龍子), he died in the third year of Meiji (明治, 1870), he hardened a gunome-chōji in the Bizen tradition which resembles that of his brother Munetsugu, chūjō-saku

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