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I am not a specialist on this lineage, but what concerns me: - its indeed shinshinto yasurime. - nakago finish is different than typical for Kunikane, though such shape in general is possible, it is much more sharp-abrupt than expected. - nijimei is not too common in shinshinto, with better lineages. - we don't see much in terms of activity, is there something like Kunikane - remains to be seen. I would be a bit careful with this one.

Hint, with a Gold Membership, one will know who they are.

Hi @SammyT It has a beautiful Sue Bizen shape . Unfortunately it seems way too far gone. The date on the tang suggests Tenbun ( 1532-1555). Almost looks like a combination of fire and chemical damage the way the steel has eroded away. With a single mekugi ana, it was probably once a beautiful blade that was well cared for

People must love me on the forum I got 5 down votes?

Hi Billy, yes, but not necessarily just because the holes are the same size. Where to start? Someone has quickly created a Netsuke-like object, hoping for a sale, but the all-round quality is completely missing for a ‘genuine’ old Netsuke.

This topic is surely worth expanding. Looking to post a coarse powder flask I found over the weekend, I discovered this good old thread! These old black-powder flasks can show astonishingly fine work. If you can find one with matching bits (frills), then all the better! See below the collar of the spout, the top of the powder measuring cap, the heads of the pegs, and the flask side-attachment seat. Detail Pouring spout

Very true - there are some real dumb folk searching eBay, with no idea what they're looking at.

I assume since my holes are the same size , I have a trinket as well ?

Thanks Pietro for the great feedback, and for showing us your examples. The various coloured glazes do make them more attractive. Surely elements of the finer detail were added by hand at some stage.(?) John, I am not sure if these would be more expensive than bone or metal. Metal Netsuke are rare enough in their own right.

May I please have an evaluation of my netsuke ?

The shape of the kissaki seems odd to me. Is that a feature of Bizen? John C.

Value is likely what you paid for it, the older papers are not taken too seriously any more. Looks like a well made dagger at the very least.

Thanks Rivkin, I updated the photos. Please share your opinion!

As they are hollow inside, I think they were molded in two halves that were then joined together before the firing. Sometimes (as in the possibly unfinished example below, also in my collection) you can still see the joint:

The seal is 正一 Masakazu, a common one on the crane sennin model. Here is my contribution in this category (but no seal):

Thank you for the compliment! I try to make sure that the listing, communication, and shipping is done the way I would want it to be done for me.

Looks like individual order? T98 with interesting tsuba and menuki. No locking mechanism and tsuba appears unadapted for leather fuchi addon. https://ebay.us/m/N6gS5Z

That would be my guess too

Fire damage?

Add some photos haha.

Pure guesses, but: It is [very] late Muromachi. Could be Bizen. Its strange when a few kanji survive like this, the rest disappear. It might be associated with some extreme impact on nakago. It has quite a few ware, which would be a significant detriment for Bizen.

5x more effort into photography and it will be possible to tell.

. I recently bought this kunikane tanto, and I am digging into the history of it. I do not know the generation though. The only signature on the sword marks kunikane, and it looks good from the 10-14 era of Sendai kunikane. I have uploaded a photo of the mei, and the paperwork is also there too. Please tell me what you guys think! I have speculated that it is from the late who. 1800s, but I still want to identify what generation it is. Please tell me your thoughts! And if possible, maybe give a ROUGH estimate of what it’s worth based on the photos. Thanks! I look foreword to hearing from other people also interested in the Japanese art of nihonto as well as nihonto experts! (The choji oil I use sometimes makes some of the dark blotches, so if it appears that way in my darker photos of the blade, it is not rust forming.) Ps, Here are some new photos, because I received feedback that the old ones weren’t enough to determine the generation - rough value. Please tell me your thoughts!!!

Go Hoosiers!

$700 Thank You, Bloomington, IN (USA)