Goto Yujo

Who was Goto Yujo?

Gotō Yūjō was a famous swordsman, artisan, and the founder of the Goto school of craftsmanship for sword mountings following the Muromachi period of the 16th century of Japan.

Yujo is said to have been an aide to Ashikaga Yoshimasa, but left the job to focus on his craft work. He became famous as the founder of one of many great families of craftsmen of parts for swords; that is, all parts necessary for a sword beside the blade. The family continued to produce tsuba until the death of his final descendant in 1856. The tsuba was noted as a reflection of the specific time period and school that designed them. Yujo's sword fittings were characterized by unusual detail, color, texture, and contrast. Many of Yujo's designs can be easily found to this day.