Help With Special Nihonto

[medikundi]

Dear Community,

 

I humbly ask for assistance with this sword, that I received as a gift from my uncle.

He bought this sword in Indonesia and brought it to France many years ago.

 

I tried decyphering the signature, but I can not find most characters,

only the third character appears to be " Izumo" ?

 

I would really appreciate if anyone can tell me more about this sword and maybe its history.

 

Best regards,
Tony

 

[Ray Singer]

Hi Tony, sorry for the bad news but this is unfortunately a fake.

[medikundi]

Hi Ray,

thanks for the super fast reply. That is very unfortunate to hear, nonetheless, it was a nice gift of my uncle.

 

He told me that he purchased just the blade in indonesia and had it shipped to France.

 

Can you tell me how one coudl tell from this sword that it is fake? Is it the inscription?

 

Cheers, Tony

[Ray Singer]

Please don't take this as an insult, as I am sure that the sword has sentimental value as it was received as a gift from a family member, but in terms of the object itself it has very little resemblance in any way to an authentic Japanese sword. Aside from the way that the sword has been signed and the fact that it was not signed in Japanese, each attribute of the sword is a very poor reflection of the way that a Japanese sword in gunto koshirae looks.

[Ray Singer]

A good place to start:

 

http://ohmura-study.net/900.html

[medikundi]

Hey Ray,

I really appreciate your time and expertise! I was really curious about this sword and tried to figure out its origin.

I am not a Japanese sword collector (you have probably noticed) :D

 

Cheers, Tony

[Dave R]

Google "PETA" or "Island sword"! Also look in the Military sword part of the forum.

[Okiiimo]

Respectfully to those that kind members that takes the time to reply to a novice (of which I am one in the realm of nihonto), isn't a response of "fake" not entirely accurate? I can understand, from the perspective of the focus of this board, that a the response is relative to whether the object is a genuine nihonto it not.

 

The OP shared a family heir loom with sentimental value for an opinion. It seems that a more polite and more accurate response would be something like, "it doesn't appear to be a traditionally made Japanese blade." After all, it does appear to be a real sword capable of harm (as opposed to foam swords my kids play with) and it might have historical significance. From the perspective of the OP, it does have significance.

[Shamsy]

I think Ray provided a very respectful and polite response. A fake is made to deceive the purchaser. A reproduction is never intended to deceive, only to emulate and is sold without question as to its nature. Tony has been very mature and humbly accepted the answer for what it is. There is no need to bring the currently insane level of political correctness onto the board.

 

As Dave has correctly pointed out though,depending on the age of the sword it may indeed be a so called island sword. Because they are so varied and each hand made, that is very difficult to discern.

[Okiiimo]

Forgive me, it was not my intention to call anyone out. I respect Mr Singer greatly for his knowledge and helpfulness on this board.

[Ken-Hawaii]

Allan, by definition, a "Nihon-to" is a traditionally-made Japanese blade, to which this board is dedicated. So how would you describe a blade that is neither Japanese, nor traditionally made? Might not "fake" be one of those terms? But Ray, being a helpful guy, pointed Tony in a direction that he can choose to follow, instead of leaving him dead in the water. Or did I mix some metaphors there? 

 

Ken

 

[Okiiimo]

The OP didn't ask if his blade was nihonto but I do understand that by implication of this boards purpose that a request of this nature first leads to a determination of whether or not it is nihonto. I was thinking in terms of politeness (which is not the same as political correctness). The use of the word "fake" to describe what was a gift from relative seems to diminish the intent for which it may have been given. Why would that be necessary if it can be avoided?

[Jean]

It is an Indonesian locally made rough copy of a Japanese sword

[IJASWORDS]

Hi Tony, I looked at your profile, and see that you became a member yesterday, probably so that you could ask about your sword. Don't be put off by the assessment of your uncles gift. The study and collection of Japanese swords can lead to a deeper knowledge of Japanese history and culture, as well as meeting some great fellow collectors. I don't know if you want to continue to have an interest in NIHON TO, as your first experience is probably a disappointment, but there is some great research material out there both in books or on line, and with knowledge comes appreciation. Keep following this forum, become involved, and this may lead to a rewarding interest in NIHON TO.