National Treasures & Important Cultural Properties
of National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, Japan

　Kawazutsumi-no-tachi (swords with a sheath wrapped with leather) were popular from the Northern and Southern Courts period to the Muromachi period. The entire sheath is wrapped with leather (shibokawa) and then lacquered in black and the area from the top of the sheath to the ninoashi is wrapped with a purple string (watarimaki). A pattern of paulownia is applied in high relief on the nanako-patterned (a pattern of fish roe like small dots) gold ground of the kabutogane (a metal fitting at the tip of the handle), sarude, tsuba (handguard), ashi kanamono (metal fittings around the top of the sheath), ishizuki (a protective metal fitting at the end of the sheath) and shibahikigane. Moreover, the fuchi, menuki and ooseppa are made of pure gold. While a pattern of two pairs of paulownia (gosannokirimon) is applied to the menuki, a pattern of a chrysanthemum branch is applied in high relief on the other metal fittings.