Ed

Hey Ray, That is what I suspected but wasn't sure of the reading. This flag reportedly was the Bridge Flag from the Nagato. I was told it was smuggled of the ship right before or at the time of it's surrender and at some point given to a Japanese gentleman from Texas by the name of Bill Nagase. The man I got it from said he had a letter with all the details given to him by Nagase, but it has been misplaced over the years. ??? Thanks for the confirmation.

Picked up a nice IJN Flag. Found this writing in a corner. I would be interested to know what it says. Sure it is an easy read for those who read Japanese, I do not. Thanks, Ed

Some woman posted this on FB as her favorite tsuba. Wabi-sabi ? The horror, the horror.

Damn, I knew someone would come along and just like that solve my question in the blink of the eye. Thanks Guido

Hi Guys, I have what may be the smallest tanto ever made! Kidding, I have no actual proof or claim to that, but it is tiny with a 3.5" nagasa. Part of the sayagaki has given me problems for years. It is in three sections. The top section was never a problem, it reads Mumei Den Osafune Kiyomitsu. It was the middle and last section which had me stumped. At first I thought the bottom section was the date, however nothing seemed to matched. Then I assumed it was the length as you can clearly make out 9 bu. The top character of the third section is also clearly NAGA, as in nagasa, but again the second character doesn't fit. After scratching my head and checking various resources off and on all day, I decided to enlist some help. Spoke with our up and coming star, Ray who was kind enough to take a look at it. Man, am I glad I did, with a bit of research on his end he determined the last section was indeed the length. Turns out he had seen a couple of things I was unaware of. First, Nagasa is sometimes truncated as NA (長). Secondly, the second character which evaded me (弍) is a more official variant of the number 2. So, that completes the bottom section Na 2 sun, 9 bu arimasu. Voilà, thanks Ray. Sadly, we are both still stumped on the two character middle section. The second character appears to be "ha", but I am not sure of that and neither of us know what the top character is, or how the two are read. Which brings me to why I write. Can someone please enlighten me on these two seemingly simple characters. (middle section). Thank you, Ed

Actually, as you see it now was my doing and the delight was on the face of a young girl, my daughter. I had the sword polished and papered along with the koshirae made in Japan probably a decade ago or more. Took me this long to photograph it . Thanks, I think the camera is going to work out fine.

I have mentioned this sword and koshirae in the past, but had never taken photos of it. Well, while playing with a new camera I decided today was the day. The sword in question is a Boy's Day sword or Chigo-sashi. The sword is signed and papered to Sandai Hisamichi. Koshirae is rabbit and floral themed. The F/K are a Mino floral set, the menuki are long eared wabbits. The saya is black lacquer with rabbits among the fall grasses. The entire work was done in Japan.

I would proceed very carefully. I was given old pure copper coin decades ago for this purpose, it left marks. Haven't used it since. Maybe the dreaded uchiko would help here, being an abrasive powder. Gentle application might remove the rust depending upon the severity. ??

Forgot to link to these previously sold tsuba: http://yakiba.com/tsuba_sold.htm

What Pete said!! Here is a link to a few descent tsuba which are not for sale, if you want to take a look: http://yakiba.com/gallery_tsuba.htm Have at least that many more I need to put up, but who has the time.

Anyone want to start on pool on how long this guy lasts? I'm guessing 1-2 more posts. I entered the data from his posts into the the analyzer and here are the results:

Thanks Malcolm, great link !!

Thank you both for your time and effort, much appreciated. Ed

Looking at the above photos, wasn't sure if they were sufficient to read. Took a few additional shots.

Just wondering if I can get a translation of this poem. Bought it for my daughter and would like to be able to tell her what it says if possible. Thanks, Ed.

Not a tanto, but how about a Daisho (Katana & Wakizashi) in koshirae. $3900 for the pair, that's $1100 under budget. (does not include shipping) http://yakiba.com/Daisho2_Sukesada-Masakiyo.htm

Bruce, I went and looked at that post, but it is from 2008. Probably a little late to be adding to it. If you think there is anyone interested, I can make a new post ?

Thanks for the info guys. Bruce, I was familiar with the Type 3 designation, but haven't heard the terms '44 model, Contingency model, Rinji model, etc. While I have seen a few of these rattan wrapped specimens over the years I have never seen any documented evidence as to who or why they were wrapped this way. Chris, no it is not the same sword as the one in your link. Look closely at the tsuka, it is wrapped differently. The blade in this one is signed Katsumasa and dated Showa Ku Hachi Nen Ku Ni Gatsu. Dated Showa but no Showa Stamp.

The koshirae for this sword is what has always been incorrectly referred to as a "Marine Landing Sword". These late war swords had nothing to do with Marine or Naval landings and in fact were made for Army officers. The Rattan wrap is unusual but not unheard of, this being the first one I have seen in years. I honestly have no idea why they were wrapped this way or by whom. As there is no documented evidence of this being in any way a standard or accepted military wrap, one can only assume that this was done in the field as a means of securing it or by a GI for whatever reason. Any relevant and documented information would be appreciated.

http://yakiba.com/Article_PhotoTips.htm

One more

Moon Tsuba

With the mekugi ana being so far apart, I would agree with Paul. Difficult to determine much more from the photos and condition. Sexy photos, the way you added the dimensions. Very clean and professional looking

Yeah, I don't have the book anymore. I let it go as it only had a very few tsuba in it. If it had had many katchushi examples I would have held onto it.

Congratulations. There is a lesson to be learned here for both new and old. There are big, and small name legitimate pieces from Japan (aren't they all) which do not have papers. Simply coming out of Japan or from a dealer without papers is no guarantee one way or the other of their legitimacy. Of course not all are legitimate, but for people to make such broad, sweeping claims is preposterous. This tsuba is in your face proof. It frustrates me every time I hear someone say with such intransigent authority, "If it is a big name and no papers it is gimei", or "If it came out of Japan and doesn't have papers, it's gimei", "it it is from a dealer and has no papers, it's gimei", or "Big name, no papers = no sale". I have brought many un-papered swords and fittings from Japan, which later went on to receive various levels of papers, from Hozon to Juyo. It has been my experience that there is only one rule for this hobby that is set in stone, and that is "nothing is set in stone".