Goto Yujo (後藤祐乗)
Yujo GOTO (1440 - June 20, 1512) was the founder of the Goto family of sword ornament craftsman. He was born in Mino Province.
His father is Mototsuna Goto
His name was Masaoki. His common name was Shirobe.
It is said that he served as a close adviser of the 8th Seii Taishogun (literally "great general who subdues the eastern barbarians") of the Muromachi Shogunate Yoshimasa ASHIKAGA, but he threw it up and became a sword ornament craftsman. He worked for Yoshimasa keeping the official business relation with the Shogunate and was given a territory of 300-cho in Sakamoto, Omi Province (present Otsu City).
Ornamental pieces he made were mainly mitokoromono (three attachments for a Japanese sword) i. e., kozuka (hilt of a small sword or the small sword itself), kogai (a metal rod attached to a sword sheath), and menuki (a hilt ornament); there were many pieces that had thick relief engraving on the underdrawing painted by painters, such as Motonobu KANO; the patterns, such as a dragon or a lion, drawn by such painters were engraved on the metal, such as gold or copper. The sculpture of Yujo had a decorative effect by adding detailed patterns to accouterments of swords according to a certain standard on them; he exerted great influence not only upon the Goto family which extended to the 17th generations, but also upon metalworkers in the Edo period.