Knife (engraved as “Bishu Osafune Shichirozaemon Sukesada, August 1572”)

A knife created in 1572 by Osafune school swordsmith Shichirozaemon. The Osafune school was a school of swordsmiths who resided in Osafune, Bizen Province (now Setouchi City, Okayama Prefecture). During the Sengoku period, demand for swords and knives grew, and many swordsmiths thrived. Among them, the Sukesada line of swordsmiths was particularly famous. Shichirozaemon Sukesada is believed to have been the child of Yosozaemon-no-jo Sukesada, an especially skilled member of the line. The knife, also called a “yoroidoshi” (“armor piercer”) is designed for stabbing directly through armor.