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SHIRO HON-SUITA AWASEDO with RENGE
207mm x 78mm x 35mm
Reads on the stone top from the upper right down in small kanji GOKUJO (extremely fine quality).
And in larger kanji to the left HON-SUITA (the name of the strata)
And in the middle right edge HIGASHI YAMA (eastern mountain)
At the lower right corner SAIKOKYU (very best quality)
This Shiro (white) Hon-Suita stone came from a store in a small town in Japan that closed in the 1970s containing stock dating back to the 1930s. The awasedo has not been used other than to test the quality at one edge of the stone as you can see in the photos and it is considered to be NEW/OLD STOCK.
Stones of this quality and character have not been mined for many years and come from the deepest strata of the Mt. Higashi mines Kyoto. This stone is very white as you can see on the underside, and with the little bit of sharpening to test the stone that I have done on the topside, you can see that some of the film has worn off the to show that the stone is pure white on the top also. In that same area is a vein of renge that is bright purple. The inclusions you see in the photos do not affect sharpening in any way and are common in suita stones. On all four corners can be see the strata skin showing how narrow or thick some of these ancient stone strata are. The back is beautifully chiseled showing the great respect the miners had for this stone.
These older stones tend to have a microns thin film or skin on the top surface that is a result of chemical reactions with the atmosphere and the minerals of the stone. The stones performance can be greatly enhanced the moment this skin is removed with a diamond flattening plate.
A Swedish blue steel Ishido Teruhide blade was used to sample this stone.
There are no equals to the feel and look of a Shiro Hon-Suita awasedo. They are beautiful to look at, and the first swipe of a blade on the surface brings out black and within a few moments a light paste develops. Because of the "su" of the stone, the small little holes hold water and help to flush away iron particles, there is no skipping or chatter when sharpening. Although a stone that leaves a very bright mirror finish, this stone is not hard to use. A truly remarkable stone. Creates a bright mirror finish on the hagane and good contrast to the jigane.
Hardness Grit Speed/Strenght Price in U.S. $
9/10 10/10 10/10 $775
SOLD