Justin Grant

I looked it up online, these are the movies they played in order The Drunken Angel Rashomon 7 Samurai Throne of Blood Yojimbo Red Beard Samurai Part I Duel at Ichijoji Temple Samurai Part II Samurai Rebellion Muhomatsu, The Rickshaw Man It is odd that TMC devoted a whole day to these moveis, and I for one enjoyed what I got to see. Justin

TMC (Turner Movie Classics) had a 24 hour long festival of Samurai moves yesterday. Some I have never seen. The 3 Samurai trilogy was the last of the 3 they played. Hope you that are in the states and get TMC had a chance to see them. I got to see Red Beard, Duel at Ichijoji Temple, and Samurai I. Justin

Hi Tom I find is fascinating that it was one of the final pieces made before the restoration and that it was made for a conflict that set the ball in motion. I have asked and looked in what limited books I have access to to find the smith and no luck. I am very sure the mei is original, the gold lining is over the mei and I am sure the gold is original. Theory is the smith was a common smith, but the treatments applied to this kabuto was of higher end (the mabezashi, gold lining, the agamaki hanger, nerigawa lined shikoro, and the finer silk odoshi). It was not for a common foot soldier, but someone of more "means". The smith took a simple zunari and added some "upgrades". I wish I had access to the Katchu Meikan to see if he is listed, or if this style has some clues to the area of manufacture, but my knowledge is shallow and resources are very sparse. Thanks! Jg

Hi Thomas The mei was translated by Moriyama-sama here http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=13251. Photos of the Kabuto are attached. The Menpo is not original to the Kabuto and the Meadate is modern. My questin/assumption is based on the date translation.

I have a question in regards to armor for the Boshin war. I have read numerous articles about uniforms and arms used for this conflict. It is stated that the Imperial forces used modern weapons and “Western” style clothing and the Shogun forces were mostly comprised of traditional Samurai and arms, but that the small elite Shogun force was armed and trained in western style outfits and arms. What brings me to this questions is that my Kabuto is signed Keio 4 Boshin, so this Kabuto was made for and during this short lived conflict. I am wondering if it was more than likely made for the Shoguns forces or would it have been just as likely to be for the Imperial forces? I know that Satsuma, Choshu, and Tosa clans were the main supporters, but again, most of what I read stated they were fully modernized. Even the woodblock and real photos show a westernized dressed army when depicting the Imperial forces and the prints show Samurai when depicting the Shogun’s forces. Just trying to figure out what side would have been most likely to have a Katchu-shi producing traditional armor for this conflict.

From FreeJapaneseLessons.com The particle "wo" (を): The particle "wo" (or "o") marks the direct object of a Japanese sentence. In the example, "I'm going to take her home" (watashi wa kanojo wo ie ni okuru), "her" would be the direct object.

In my opinion, it was a non matched set, the sode were from a more elaborate armor, the menpo did not belong with the kabuto, the sunate were different from the other parts. The kabuto was not lined, etc. Decent parts, but I think Frank paid retail for it at $3,500. The other armor looked modern, the armor the guy said had a 12K menpo (Bird beak). Doubtful that it was a 16th century armor. The one very honest thing the "expert appraiser" had to say was that this armor was not for any serious collector, they would have no interest in it, and it was more for the new collector that wants a set. Justin

Eric If you make the trek up to Louisville, please let me know, I'll come down to Louisville and would love to meet you. Thanks Justin

This spiral sewing to not easy. After a few circles, it started to look like a blind person started sewing. After removing all of the thread, I am going to draw a pattern in chalk to follow. Justin

Ian, with this new information, I would suggest you keep an eye out for a box from the US. :D I'll give it a try.

Well, the band is out. It was anchored in by the hachi tsuke-no-byo in three places and the shinobi-ne-no-o anchors. The real trick will be stitching it back in. The space between the ni-no-ita and the hachi sandwiched the leather band in. Need to think on this step without removing the shikoro.

Ian, What is you shipping address? I have a large box on they way that needs your attention :D I'll give this a go, but have a feeling I'll be making several until I get it right. I am guessing a sewing machine is out of the question when it comes to the spiral?

Thank you Eric. Ian or Piers Is it more of a spiral or perfect circles that one sews, ties off, and starts another circle? Can I use the current band that is still sewn into the rim? I assume I can remove it. Thanks Jg

Piers, would you by chance have a name or a link? I have no idea what to search for. I did secure a rather old (1920's) Asa (Hemp) male kimono online, and plan on using it for a liner if I have to make one. Ian, I think the reason the katchushi use such thick thread is that Hemp only comes in small rope sizes! I have looked all over the web and the smallest I can find is 16 gauge! I called the local "hippie" shop in town, they are all "hemp" people, and they too have never seen a decent small sewing type hemp thread, and they use cotton thread when making the "tree hugger" outfits. Maybe the thicker thread added strength and toughness?

Piers, Did you make your own liner? I need one for my kabuto. Pointers welcome! It is hard to see the Zunari in your kabuto. The transformation is unreal.

Eric- No indication that it was ever anything more than Sabiji. The red urushi is still on the inside of the mabizashi, and the gold is still very present in the bowl. There are no signs of urushi under the shikoro, and the odoshi looks original, so I don't think it was removed and then the lacquer removed and then re-laced. Piers, would love to see you new find.

With the expert help of many including Ian, Moriyama Sama, Thomas, John, and Uwe, the Mei was translated in the Translation Section, so I thought I would post some photos. This is not a high end item, but a good example of a late custom kabuto. I don't have a date on the menpo, it is not a matched set. The maedate is a modern piece, just added for flair. The shikoro are leather faced. The mabizashi is doubled over the stock zunari peak. The bowl is gold urushi on the inside. It also has a hanger (forget name for it) on the back for an agamaki bow. The bowl is sabiji. Once I figure out where the maker worked and what school, I'll be jazzed! Thanks Justin PS, these are the sellers photos.

Moriyama Sama Thank you, I know this was a tough one when parts of words are missing. I assume the Boshin reference is to the last days of the samurai before the October 1868 Nengo change to Meiji. If that is correct, it would be between January and October of 1868. Now I need to see if he is listed anywhere. Thank you for bringing his words back to life. Justin

The kanji are cut into the steel, then covered in red. I added baby powder and it filled in the depressions. I uploaded some more pics with the powder, here is a decent smaller version. If you go to the gallery, you can blow the images up to see detail that you can't upload here. Outside of not being able to determine if the first kanji in the Name is Kane/Kin/Ki/, the yoshi and saku are clear. They are 4 vertical rows of kanji, the far left is the name, the one next to is looks like 2 and 10, the next looks like 4 and I can't tell what the bottom two kanji are and the far right are lost to me. Thanks for the help. Link to complete album https://picasaweb.google.com/1040542998 ... directlink

Hi Thomas Can you or someone tell me how to do this (what product to use) never had to do this before. Thanks

Thank you Ian. I wonder if the Kanji we assume is Kane is actually KI. Looking in JISHP there is a similar Kanji to Kane called Ki that is used in words like Kuwadate (te being Hiragana) or the other variant of the kanji is takura snd simply ki. Maybe this helps?

I just acquired this Kabuto. The mei is hard to read, I see Kin/Kane and Yoshi Saku on the far left, I see 4th year (maybe) far right and in the middle I see 20 (2 and 10). The entire area this text is located in measures 1.5" wide and 1" tall. This is my first signed piece of any of my collection, so I am excited to find out if one of our experts can read the mei. Here is a link to the Google Photos that I have 5 total images of this mei. They are large files. https://picasaweb.google.com/1040542998 ... directlink Here are a few smaller scale shots. Thank you!

All I have are the sellers pictures, it is on the way. Just doing a bit of research before hand. That is the fun of the wait. The pictures I have are not clear, so not sure much can be gleaned.

I appreciate the heads up. I have a kabuto that has a mei, trying to see if it fits a Myochin smith. To be honest, its a long shot it is myochin at all. It looks like kin or kane and yoshi saku (maybe). It is faint, and a bunch of unreadable kanji.

Uwe Since my mom is German, its a bit easier for me to get thru. If you have it electronically, I would be grateful! Justin it