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I do have a picture of the sword, somewhere, but I will have to find it and copy it. I need to anyway, as the mei was definitely one for Bruce to have in his files. I will try and find it out Ed.

Never seen a lined combat cover. That's very interesting. Do you have a photo of the cover?

I did have a very nice Yoshimichi march 1943 dated katana, the aluminium saya had a fine green leather combat cover, but unusually, the combat cover was also lined with fine white leather. I have never encountered this before. I had quite a few with combat covers, of all types and qualities, but this is the only one with such a lining that I have encountered.

Dear Gentleman sure someone can read and translate the "soemei" on this Kanesada sword many thanks in advance!

Hi Paris, Numbering is a good idea. Just added the numbers.

Love that small teppo shaped one.

As Tim and other said , this is a kozuka (handle) and kogatana (blade) that was carried as an accessory/utility knife in the side of the scabbard of the sword. Basically call it a Samurai's Swiss Army knife :-) Sometimes the blades are forged and folded and have a small hamon, sometimes they are plain steel, hardened. They are collected on their own as well as with the complete koshirae of the sword. The blades aren't permanently installed. Sometimes friction fit with a slight bend in the tang, sometimes pine pitch etc. Often they can be moved or removed and are loose. Not huge value, but a pair like this would go for over 100-150 bucks. Nice little accoutrements and decently well made.

And an other one. Number 3.

Here is an other one. Number 2.

Thanks Piers. Little lasting remnants of times gone by. Quite evocative. We had vinaigrettes and snuff boxes etc!

I forgot to add this photos.

To start a thread about leather combat covers and all the variations out there. Let me show the first one. A civilian sword used in ww2. Regards, Ed Number 1.

Seems to be lacquer

Real or fake the thing looks pretty horrid. A thread for leather covers would be a welcome addition, many have rotted away or simply discarded over the years.

Look at the drips of pigment on the underside of the Kura is this actually lacquer, and not another medium?

The blade itself, ko-gatana, is made of kawagane or skin steel (see links below). Suggest keeping the ko-gatana lightly oiled, especially the rusty area where it inserts into the kozuka to prevent the rust there from continuing. Search this message board for threads on sword care. No silver polish! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakudō https://www.martialartswords.com/blogs/articles/shingane-vs-kawagane-steel-whats-the-difference https://studyingjapaneseswords.com/tag/kawagane/

Hi Rob, no need to say sorry. It's always good to read other members opinion about things. There is a lot of knowledge around here and good to share. Regards, Ed

Sorry Ed @EdWolf... my misunderstanding.

Hi Rob, I know about shrinkage and sloppy covers made off finer and soft leather but this one is not sloppy at all. The leather looks very thick and sturdy. In my opinion that is suspicious. Maybe we should start a separate thread about leather combat covers. Always good to see some original examples and there are a lot of variations. Regards, Ed

Dang, Conway, you're getting good at this!

I agree with Uwe, the Kura appears to be period, but the restoration is modern. It was likely restored so that it could be used, and the price likely reflects that.

I agree with Uwe, not Edo period. The tells are in the design, finishes and fittings.

Also, here in this thread there is a sword with the same inscription https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/522-translation-help/