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Nakayama Kiita Koppa, Tomae layer, Kyoto honyama finishing stone
A Nakayama kiita koppa from the Kyoto mines on Mt. Atago, the source of the best-known finishing stones in Japan. Kiita (黄板, \"yellow plate\") designates the yellow bodied Nakayama material, the most sought after of the mine\'s colors. Koppa (小端) designates an offcut, a smaller or irregular piece cut from the same block as full size bench stones and sold at a fraction of their price.
Why buy this one?
You\'re buying from a US seller. The item ships from New York within a day or two and you get a properly sourced item. Ships Priority Mail in a flat rate box or faster. You also avoid the risk of having to wait to get a lump of clay that goes directly into the trash (this has happened to me before when testing out an overseas seller, and I basically write off anything they sell as suspect - this comes from a reputable Japanese supplier).
Why a koppa?
Koppa are the offcuts generated when a quarried block is sawn into bench stones. Price tracks size and shape. Three points for the bench:
- The material is identical to that of the bench stones cut from the same block. Fineness, hardness and feel are properties of the rock and hold at any size.
- Full size Nakayama kiita bench stones sell in the high hundreds and above. A koppa provides access to the same material for a small fraction of that, which makes it the practical way to evaluate how the mine performs on your steel and with your technique.
- Weight can be deceptive. I pick my stones based on surface area with the assumption that these can be mounted into a wood block and used fairly easily.
What kiita designates
Kiita is a color classification. It describes a stone with a yellow body that produces a yellow toned slurry. Within Nakayama material, hardness and fineness vary independently of color; soft and hard examples occur in both kiita and asagi. Hard kiita carries a premium that tracks remaining supply. The specifics of this piece are in the photos and the condition notes below.
About the mine and the name
Nakayama is the best known of the Kyoto mines and the origin of the honyama (本山) designation, meaning stone from the true mountain of Mt. Atago. The designation has been applied broadly across the market for decades, and the volume sold under the Nakayama name exceeds what the mine is documented to have produced.
This stone
- Weight: 228g
- Type: Kiita koppa
- Layer: Tomae
- Reason for sale: Downsizing collection
Use
Raise slurry with a diamond or stone nagura, work the edge, then dilute down and finish on clean water. Lap the face flat before first use. Natural finishing stones may contain hard inclusions and toxic lines, so test on a scrap edge before putting a finished razor or a valued blade on it.
Photos show the exact stone you will receive.
Sale terms (read before buying)
Sales only to US addresses.
This is a vintage natural stone sold as-is, all sales final. No returns for remorse, change of mind, or \"doesn\'t suit my sharpening style.\"
The hardness and grit figures in this listing are my own comparative assessments against my own inventory. There is no industry standard for grading Japanese natural stones. My 5 is not another seller\'s 5, and these numbers are offered as guidance, not specification. Natural stones are inherently variable: performance depends on your steel, your prep, your nagura, and your technique, and no particular result is guaranteed.
The photos are part of the description examine them closely; they show the exact stone you will receive. Measurements are approximate; color varies by monitor. If anything is unclear, ask before purchasing.
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