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Possible Amata Sadayoshi Blade?

Joorsh

By Joorsh
in Military Swords of Japan

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Joorsh Rookie

Joorsh

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Hi all,

 

First post for me, sincere apologies if this is the wrong section or if my terminology is incorrect - still learning! I'm also not sure if this blade is machine made or traditionally made, I'll leave it up to the mods if they want to move this post.

 

This blade was recently handed down to me from my father and appears to be a WW2 sword, in fairly rough condition. Sadly that's all I had to go on, but I've spent some time researching with my (very) limited skills and here's what I've found:

  • There are no serial numbers stamped on the blade or scabbard that I can see. So hopefully that means it's not machine made?
  • The Nakago has markings on both sides.
  • A combination of google searches and translations seems to indicate it was made in 1936 by Amata Sadayoshi, who I believe was the father or brother of legendary maker Amata Akitsugu?

 

Is anyone able to weigh in and help me out here? What I'd love to know is:

  • Is this a traditionally made blade, or machine made?
  • Is my translation correct regarding the maker and date?
  • The history behind the maker, when and where he lived, approximately how many swords he made, any and all info would be fantastic!
  • Were his blades considered to be below or above average quality? Are his blades sought after?
  • What was his relation (if any) to Amata Akitsugu?

Photos:

 

5mbq4bK.jpg

 

71p12gq.jpg

 

MqGFbQi.jpg

 

OSZeVBY.jpg

 

AbVNUdw.jpg

 

Thanks for your time!

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Grey Doffin Grand Master

Grey Doffin

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Hi, name please,

I think: Echigo Kuni no Ju Amada Kaneyoshi.  The date is Showa Ju Ichi Nen Ju Ni Gatsu Hi (a day in the 12th month of 1936).  If I'm correct with the mei, I know nothing about the smith; sorry (I know even less if I'm wrong).  Not many swords were made in 1936; this is a bit unusual.  Not possible to tell from your pix if it is traditionally made.

Here is a care & etiquette site; please read it twice. http://www.nbthk-ab.org/Etiquette.htm

Cheers,  Grey

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Joorsh Rookie

Joorsh

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Hi Grey, sorry my name is Josh.

 

What pictures could I provide to assist with identifying machine vs hand made?

And how confident are you with the name translation of Amada Kaneyoshi?

 

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Grey Doffin Grand Master

Grey Doffin

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Hi Josh,

The fancy file marks (kesho yasuri) at the top of your tang (nakago) are a big hint to traditional made.  The sword will have a temper line (hamon) and may have a visible grain (hada).  If you could post pictures to show that/them it would help.

How confident am I of my reading?  If no one corrects me I'm confident; otherwise all bets are off.

Grey

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PNSSHOGUN Grand Master

PNSSHOGUN

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Well signed Mei are usually a good indicator of traditionally forged blades. In 1936 there wasn't as much Showato or nontraditional forging being conducted like we see during the war era. The mounts look to be in fair condition, keep an eye on the leather cover as it tends to be fragile if not cared for.

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Joorsh Rookie

Joorsh

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Thank you both for your information.

Sadly yes, the leather cover has severely deteriorated and has completely disintegrated in more than a few places. I'm avoiding even touching it!

Approximately 3/5 of the leather on the Saya is gone completely and the metal underneath is badly rusted. Do you have any advice or articles I can read on how to best care for what is left?

 

As for the good news, I just received confirmation from Paul Martin of The Japanese Sword in Tokyo that the signature characters do indeed say "Echigo ju Amata Sadayoshi", father of the last living national treasure Amata Akitsugu.

Seeing as Amata Sadayoshi died in 1937 and this sword was made in December 1936, it's safe to say this was one of his last pieces.

 

For those interested in how it came into my family, my father was gifted the sword by Dr Harold Marsh, a medic in World War 2 who was born in 1913 and died in 2009. Harold and my father founded a medical practice together and I believe it was a parting gift. Harold uncovered the sword while serving in Borneo. It had been buried by a Japanese officer not wishing to have it surrendered.

 

Here are some pictures of the blade. The hamon is obscured but still there. It's sad to see it so neglected, but given it's of relatively recent age and of no major historical significance, it's probably not worth a restoration and polish.

 

gJbKzoi.jpg

 

WbOUGXg.jpg

 

pu1XCIE.jpg

 

Uyug84i.jpg

 

QgFpkbK.jpg

 

BRensXu.jpg

 

Is it a safe bet to now say this was traditionally made?

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paulb Grand Master

paulb

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Josh

Shingunto simply translates as "New Army" and refers to the various types of mount used in the showa period. More recently it has been used to generally describe non traditionally made blades. It is a little like the term Showa-to which refers to blades made in the showa era but again is now used for machine made work.

Deciding whether your sword is hand made or not is challenging in its current condition. In its favour the mei looks reasonalby cut and the yasurime nicely done. There appears to be a hamon but it is not possible to see detail As previously mentioned when this sword was made there were fewer machine made pieces being produced. Also it has no arsenal stamps. These are good pointers to it being traditionally made but to be sure you need to put it in front of an experienced collector and consider having it polished.

Fortunaltely there is a fully trained polisher in Auatralia who I am sure would be happy to offer advice.

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Joorsh Rookie

Joorsh

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Hi Chris,

 

Thank you for the tip with lighting from behind. No sunlight currently available but I used a flashlight instead.

The hamon immediately popped out!  Amazing!

 

GRsaCxZ.jpg

 

CeHc66D.jpg

 

I guess this gives me some idea what the old beauty might have looked like in her prime, eh?

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Ray Singer Grand Master

Ray Singer

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Being an authentic Amada Sadayoshi, there is no doubt that this is a traditionally made sword and is worthwhile to pursue restoration. Sadayoshi was a top smith of that time period and examples of his work I have seen in fresh polish were wonderful. The fact that it is of 'recent age' is not a concern to preclude restoration. If the sword were mine I would share with Andrew to get his assessment.

 

Here are some pictures of the blade. The hamon is obscured but still there. It's sad to see it so neglected, but given it's of relatively recent age and of no major historical significance, it's probably not worth a restoration and polish.

 

Is it a safe bet to now say this was traditionally made?

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Stephen Grand Master

Stephen

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Thanks Ray! it is the stroke of Sadaroku which would explain a lot being one of his last swords and  at his age id have a student do it too.

 

 

Great possibilities with this one, looking forward to seeing what Andrew says about saving this. 

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Bruce Pennington Grand Master

Bruce Pennington

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Josh,

 

To your question about "type" - The army officer gunto in the first stage was called the Type 94. They normally came with 2 "ashi" or belt hangers, but yours seems to only have one. The second one was removable, and often was, later in the war, so I would still call yours a Type 94. (95 was NCO only, and 98 came later with only 1 ashi)

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Joorsh Rookie

Joorsh

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Also as Sadayoshi died in 1937, this sword dated the 12th month of 1936 is one of the last few swords he produced.

 

You may enjoy this article.

http://www.nihontocraft.com/Yamamoto_NBTHK.html

 

Ray, I can't thank you enough for this article (you too Bazza). What an amazing read! To think Admiral Yamamoto - planner and executor of the pearl harbour attacks, died with his favourite Amada Sadayoshi sword between his knees, just wow.

 

I have found photo's of two certified Sadayoshi blade's online (at least, they claim to be certified). Here is how they compare to mine:

 

FX2UWHA.jpg

 

Genuine blades on the left and right, mine in the middle. Please excuse my nasty copy\paste Photoshop job. I have sharpened the image to make the characters more clearly visible.

 

To my untrained eye they look pretty darn close. Only the second-last character is a bit off, but perhaps it's a style difference because it's not consistent in any of the examples. Maybe it's like me always struggling to draw a neat capital "R"  :)      What do you all think?

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Ray Singer Grand Master

Ray Singer

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To me that is an indicator that Sadaroku may have signed the sword on behalf of his teacher. It is the way he signed his own blades (refer to the oshigata I shared above) and students often assisted the master to varying degrees. I do not know the circumstances of Sadayoshi's death at the young age of 38, just four months after this sword was made, however if there were health issues it would be expected that the student may have provided support in finishing his master's swords in this way...

 

 

 

 

Only the second-last character is a bit off, but perhaps it's a style difference because it's not consistent in any of the examples. Maybe it's like me always struggling to draw a neat capital "R"  :)      What do you all think?

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Joorsh Rookie

Joorsh

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Still grateful for the link Bazza. I'd forgotton to go back and read it, but you reminded me. Very glad I did!

No news from Andrew, however I spoke again with Paul Martin and he agrees that this one may indeed be worth restoring and putting in a plain wooden sleeping scabbard. I believe Paul was the first ever non-Japanese to win the NBTHK Tokyo Chapter kantei kai, so that's advice I don't think I can ignore.

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