Justin Grant

Also, for comparison, here is a Hanpo from what I believe is the early/mid Edo that belongs to a matching set of armor I purchased from Toraba (these are Trevor's images)

Martin, This is a Hanpo or 1/2 Mask. They too cover a wide range of time. There are little "tells" that can help direct you, but unless you have years and years of experience at looking at known dated items, it is simply a guess unless signed. I don't have the experience to do this myself. I have several Menpo and Hanpo and the dates are all over the place. I was told one good indicator is the color of urushi on the inside (red or balck), the hana (nose) rivits vs. prongs, the asa-nagashi-no-ana as indicated above. Here is what I think is a mid/late Edo menpo (notice removable nose)

I bought the book Grey referenced above and it arrived today. It is a must have! Unbelievable... I now have a new mission in life, to make it to TX to see what they have.

Luc, Send me info on your set for sale. Me

Here is a link to the images. https://picasaweb.google.com/1040542998 ... directlink Thanks, and any input is greatly appreciated!

Ian, et al, I am still researching this Kamon, and in class today (East Asian Studies at Indiana University) we are studying Hotta Masayoshi and presto, this is the same Kamon. So, I started looking into this and this clan was awarded the han of Shinano in 1635, then in 1643 they were moved to Sakura where they remained until the end of the Edo era. So, we are speculating that the Tanegashima was made in the late 1790's early 1820's. The maker signed that he was from Go Shu Hino, and the early part of the clan was in Shinano, which is right there, but the decorations are Sakai, so I am just looking for some thoughts. Thanks.. Justin (Watching the US Elections Results on TV, and shaking my head)

Thanks Ian. You answered the questions I had, and it its clear now. Thanks for the education. Justin

What Dave means is, you can get one like it on Ebay with a helmet for around the same money. These are not high end armor. Nice to have in a collection, but not a treasure. Justin

I too have looked at that gusoku, and have wondered about the lacing on the Dou. It looks slack at the top, and maybe that is just me being picky. I don't think it is a matching set, but that is not to say it is not original parts, just think some parts are from other armor. For 400,000 JPY or $5,000 US, you could do much worse on ebay for that same money. There are some real pieces of junk there for the same amount of money.. The place that is selling this armor have been real good to me on my purchases, so I can reccomend them from an honesty and ease of transaction standpoint. Good luck

Thank you, what would be the reason for such a thing? Are you saying this might be a moderisn item? Hope for Piers sake that is not the case. Justin

Hey guys, can you elaborate on your statements, I would like to understand what you see and why. Thanks Justin

True, but it does reflect a major political issue during the time.

My understanding, and what is being taught at Indiana University is the following: Jomon 10,000-300BC Yayoi 300BC - 300AD Kofun 300AD-645AD Yamoto 500AD-600AD Nara 710AD-794AD Heian 794AD-1185AD Kamakura 1185AD-1333AD Kenmu Restoration (Go-Diago) 1334 Nambochuko 1334-1392 Muromachi 1392-1582 Momoyama 1582-1603 Tokugawa (Edo) 1603-1868 Your mileage may vary.

What did you clean it with? Ian told me to mix White Spirits (Mineral Spirits) and Boiled Linseed Oil in 50/50 mix. It works great and leaves a nice semi gloss on the sabiji areas.

Hi Andy, I don't have anything to add to the debate here, but I did attend the display at Frazier and took several pictures of some very nice items. It was a wonderful display and I managed to secure several catalogs. Thanks for the wonderful display that was just an hour from my home. Justin

Hi All, I think Markus hit it. I should have provided more information. It is part of my Samurai History Class at Indiana University. We are watching the 47 Ronin and one question is "Who is the shogun in the film? How is he portrayed? How is his sobayonin portrayed?" Just was not familiar with the term.. Thanks for the help!

What does the term Sabayonin mean?

I vote for ice cream! By the way, if that is a drawing above, that is one heck of a job! Looks real.

森田さn Why would it be in Katakana and not Kanji or at least hiragana? I thought it was Taatsu　ターツ, but see how the "to"　ト 　could be read. ありがとうございます グラント

I have a question in regards to Samurai using "shields" in battle in the Kamakura period. I am reading a book by Karl Friday and in the chapter "Culture of War" he quotes a passage from "Konjaku Monogatarishu" about the battle of Minamoto Mitsuru and Taira Yoshifumi "...While all prepared their hearts, readying to cast aside their bodies and disregard their lives, they planted shields in rows, facing each other at a distance of about one chou..." I know I have seen reference to early Nara/Heian period conscripted peasants using shields, but never in terms of the Samurai. Was it standard encampment technology to protect the camp from arrows, and these are less than personal shields and more walls in nature? Karl also takes a good potshot at Turnbull in this chapter and calls Steven wrong on some topics.. Not a good read but a required book for my history class (Old student I am!)

Maybe he did it to keep people from faking his work... Can't be easy doing what he did. And yes, people with Dys see letters backwards. Sometimes, whole words.

Any thoughts? Appreciate the help. Thanks Justin

Moriyama-Sama, eta al I wonder if the kanji we assume to be "Kane" 金 is actually 企 "Ki"? I am looking for alternate kanji that may provide a match for a name. Grasping at straws. Thank you, Justin

I am not sure, but I am practicing on a set of armor with detailed instructions from Ian. Not easy, but very rewarding. I purchased 60 meters of dark blue odoshi and 60 meters of real sinew and I just have at it. Justin