Identification

[GLee]

Hello I was looking over a thread from back in 2007 and I saw a lot of good feed back for the identification of Mei on another wakizashi, and I am hoping I can perhaps inspire a new discussion about my most recent thrift store find.

[GLee]

It has been suggested that it is bizen kuni ju sukemitsu and I would like to see if anyone can recognize it as such. Please keep in mind the tsuba appears to be hammered iron and there is some bronze attached despite the fact that most has fallen off.

[Brian]

Possible Bizen Kuni ju Sukemitsu.

備前国住助光

 

Brian

 

Ps - Posted before I saw your reply.

[GLee]

Possible Bizen Kuni ju Sukemitsu.

備前国住助光

 

Brian

 

Ps - Posted before I saw your reply.

Thank you for the feed back that was really quick, what do you think the likelyhood is of it being gimei

[Jean]

Is it dated? Sukemitsu is a smith lineage.

[Jean]

BTW, please, according to Board rules, thanks to sign all your posts with your first name and an initial

[Stephen]

always fig they are gimei until shinsa, love the tsuka, cant tell much from your dark photos

[cabowen]

I would agree with Bizen no Kuni ju Sukemitsu....Search 備前国住助光 on Google and see how yours compares to valid examples.

[Jean]

Too many generations of Sukemitsu, should be dated, sue Muromachi nagamei Bizen blades usually are.

[GLee]

BTW, please, according to Board rules, thanks to sign all your posts with your first name and an initial

No I have not dated it yet

 

Devan G

[Jean]

Sorry Devan, I should have written: Is there a date chiselled on the nakago ura side?

[GLee]

Sorry Devan, I should have written: Is there a date chiselled on the nakago ura side?

No Jean there is not, I have been looking this thing over for some time. As a hobby I make knives and I have always liked the beauty of the katana and the wakizashi. So when I saw this piece I felt required to buy it, I think from all of the chatting that I have seen it may help if I just polish a section of the blade and see if I can identify the hamon. Not to mention the fact that my pictures really are pretty terrible. The blade really caught my interest mostly because of the rust under the handle and the nicks on the blade this piece looks to me like it was in one great final battle then put away as a trophy, I assume that if it were an heirloom the family would have restored it. It's almost impossible to know with advanced computerized machines how old it is but I know that from the rust under the handle and the lack there of on the blade it wasn't a replica tossed in a field. The hammered iron tsuba fits the area and the period of Sukemitsu the fuchi and the kashira are also made of iron, and the habaki is made of bronze.

 

Devan G

[Jean]

Sukemitsu (助光), 1st gen., Gen´ō (元応, 1319-1321), Bizen – „Ichi Bishū Yoshioka-jū Sukemitsu“ (一備州吉岡住助光), „Ichi Bizen no Kuni Yoshioka-jū Sakon Shōgen Ki no Sukemitsu“ (一備前国吉岡住左近将監紀助光), Yoshioka-Ichimonji school, according to transmission the son of Sukeyoshi (助吉), he was active from about Einin (永仁, 1293-1299) to Karyaku (嘉暦, 1326-1329), later works show a somewhat elongated chū-kissaki, dense itame mixed with mokume and midare-utsuri, the hamon is in early years a large dimensioned chōji in Fukuoka-Ichimonji-manner, in his middle artistic period a somewhat smaller chōji mixed with gunome and togari-gunome, and later a suguha with ashi or noticeable slanting ashi, the tempering itself is always in nioi-deki, jōjō-saku

 

Sukemitsu (助光), 2nd gen., Kenmu (建武, 1334-1338), Bizen – „Bishū Yoshioka-jū Saemon no Jō Sukemitsu“ (備州吉岡住左衛門尉助光)

 

Sukemitsu (助光), 3rd gen., Enbun (延文, 1356-1361), Bizen – „Bishū Yoshioka-jū Sukemitsu“ (一備州吉岡住助光)

 

Sukemitsu (助光), 1st gen., Ōei (応永, 1394-1428), Bizen – „Bishū Osafune Sukemitsu“ (備州長船助光), it is said that his roots were in the Yoshioka-Ichimonji school

 

Sukemitsu (助光), 2nd gen., Eikyō (永享, 1429-1441), Bizen – „Bishū Osafune Sukemitsu“ (備州長船助光)

 

Sukemitsu (助光), 3rd gen., Bunmei (文明, 1469-1487), Bizen – „Bishū Osafune Sukemitsu“ (備州長船助光), „Sukemitsu“ (助光)

 

Sukemitsu (助光), 4th gen., Eishō (永正, 1504-1521), Bizen – „Bishū Osafune Sukemitsu“ (備州長船助光)

 

Sukemitsu (助光), 5th gen., Tenbun (天文, 1532-1555), Bizen – „Bishū Osafune Sukemitsu“ (備州長船助光), gunome, suguha, wazamono

 

Sorry but no Bizen smiths signed like Bizen Kuni Ju Sukemitsu...

[Brian]

Do NOT try and polish any of it yourself. There is a reason why polishers study for 5-10 years to learn how to polish.

Every scratch you add takes an entire surface removal to reduce. No matter what the apparent condition, trying to polish it yourself will not do anything positive.

 

Brian

[GLee]

I was able to take some better pictures and if you look closely you can see the hamon.

 

Devan G