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Samurai swords

Samurai swords, armor ready for action in online sale Jan. 15

Tom Hoepf
Tom Hoepf
Samurai swords
Wakizashi made by a great swordsmith Echizen Yasutsugu in 1603. Estimate: $5,500-$7,000. Jasper52 image

NEW YORK – Japanese swords and armor are joined by additional Asian antiques in a Jasper52 online auction that will be conducted Tuesday, Jan. 15. Among the impressive items being offered are Chinese paintings, Buddhist figures, carved jadeite and tsuba sword fittings. Absentee and Internet live bidding is available through LiveAuctioneers.

One of the finest swords in the auction is a wakizashi made in 1603 by Echizen Yasutsugu, a second-generation swordsmith of the Tokugawa, a powerful daimyo family of Japan. Yasutsugu was the personal swordsmith of Yuuki Hideyasu, a son of the first Tokugawa Ieyasu shogun. The weapon (above) is expected to sell for $7,000 or more.

Legend says the soul of the samurai resides in his sword while his personality is his armor. There’s plenty of personality left in a 19th century suit of Japanese Tyouryaku samurai armor. The complete set of armor comes from a Japanese dojo and was worn and used.

Samurai swords
Japanese samurai armor, 1894, made by Tyouryaku, 64 inches high. Estimate: $6,000-$7,000. Jasper52 image

A kake is a standard that holds a Japanese sword horizontally. Several are offered in the Jasper52 auction, including a wooden one profusely decorated in gold lacquer. Made in the late Edo Period, prior to 1868, the stand measures about 19¼ x 18 inches.

Samurai swords
Japanese wooden kake (sword standard) decorated in gold lacquer, late Edo period, 19th century.
Estimate: $4,800-$5,000. Jasper52 image

Buddist figures in the sale include a 12-inch-tall lacquer bodhisattva in camphor wood.

Samurai swords
Chinese lacquer Bodhisattva figurine sitting in meditation, 19th century, camphor wood, 12 inches high. Estimate: $100-$120. Jasper52 image

Artworks include a pair of painted portraits on paper of a 19th century Chinese couple. The portraits come with a certificate of antiquity from Hong Kong Art Craft Merchants Association Ltd.

Samurai swords
A pair of Chinese ancestor couple painted portraits, 19th century, 16 x 28 inches. Estimate: $450-$550. Jasper52 image

A Japanese ningyo, a doll-like male figure from the turn of the 20th century is dressed in its original silk clothing. It retains the original wooden box.

Samurai swords
Japanese ningyo in traditional silk clothing, 16 inches tall, with original box. Estimate: $1,000-$1,100. Jasper52 image

The auction will take place Tuesday, Jan. 16, at 6 p.m. Eastern time.

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Samurai swords