Yari spearhead, signed ‘Kanekatsu’

Yari (spear) with an over 30 cm blade is regarded as a long spear and was popular in the 16th century.
This example is 159.6 cm in full length and its blade is over 60 cm. It was created by Kanekatsu who was a swordsmith in Mino Province (modern Gifu Prefecture). Mino Province was one of the five major regions which produced excellent swords. The other four are Yamashiro (Kyoto Prefecture), Yamato (Nara Prefecture), Bizen (Okayama Prefecture), and Soshu (Kanagawa Prefecture). They were called ‘gokaden’, which means five traditions, referring to the distinct sword style of each province.