Guido

Markus, although I just love your disclaimer, I nontheless feel like commenting: it actually caused me some physical pain to look at that Kissaki for more than 3 seconds ...

Let me - yet again - quote from my article on collecting. "Sword" of course can be substituted by "Tsuba", "Fuchigashira" and so on:

They make a certain part of your anatomy look smaller than it actually is ...

What I have learned this far: * Educated opinions are no match for self-delusion. ** Temporary bans don't work. *** Never date a girl with big hands.

Stephen is right: the pic of the "Mei" alone is sufficient to identify it as a Chinese fake.

In all of my years of collecting I've only seen one Daishô that was obviously made for being worn on the right side (at least judging from the Kurigata); it had Tokubetsu Hozon Tôsôgu papers, a very good quality Handachi Daishô, belonging to one of the dealers of the group Bob Hughes is a member of, too (a Mr. Ii???). I believe it was on display at the 2007 DTI. In any case, as was pointed out already, left-handedness was "strongly discouraged" to say the least. IMO it was rather made for a one-armed Samurai than a lefty.

"Amen" to that, Barry! One of the main problems is that newcomers to Nihontô think all the info they need is out there on the internet. Partially that's true, and there *are* some shortcuts, saving a lot of time (but also missing quite some fun) we old farts spent learning stuff "the hard way". The new fakes are the proverbial litmus test, and I'm afraid those without first-hand experience in appreciating high quality Nihontô will pay dearly ...

You guys haven't seen "the new generation" of fakes - I guess the only reason they don't show on eBay yet is that they are too expensive for bargain hunters. I went to the Panjiayuan area a couple of weeks ago - lots of antique shops there ("antique" as in "made last week") - and was surprised to see quite a few Japanese swords, Edo period mountings as well as Guntô. The mounts were impressive, great detail and occasionally even Jabara-maki wraps, all in pristine condition - *too* pristine for my taste. The blades, however, gave them away as fakes, although they were pretty well forged, on the same level as, let's say, Paul Chen's Hanwei swords. It's obvious that all swords were 1:1 copies of original swords, and very good quality originals at that. Some had the sword in Shirasaya with horn fittings. Prices were set accordingly, $,$$$ and even higher. At the first shop I almost fell for a beautiful Tantô-Koshirae with Tsunagi and great Soroi-Kanagu - until I saw the very same item at two other shops! Upon closer inspection I realized the metal wasn't Shibuichi (maybe antiqued silver), and looking into the Saya revealed new wood. Other than that, the highest quality fake I ever saw, on par with contemporary Japanese custom Koshirae. I'm willing to bet that almost nobody - including myself - would identify them as fakes if posted here, especially if the photos were a tad out of focus. I didn't bring a camera, but will do so next time (however, I'm leaving on a two week business trip the day after tomorrow), and hope they let me take pictures. I guess I have to come up with a cover story ("a friend abroad is interested but needs pictures"), or doing kind of a candid camera stunt. In any case, the mind boggles, and I'm actually quite impressed. They even managed to copy bluray discs now, saw the first shipment arrive the day before yesterday - and bought one for scientific purposes . Believe me, you're not able to tell the difference (except that the cover is an obvious photocopy, but even that on good, glossy paper). The whole package for US $ 2.80 ...

Doesn't look too good - Keith Larman is practically begging people over on SFI (http://forums.swordforum.com/showthread.php?t=95592) to visit the show ...

Dirk and Jacques are both right, die left Nakago is Shôshin. The key point is how "sada", the last Kanji, is written - more precisely, how the 7'th and 8'th stokes are arranged. the Forgerer used the "correct" form in which the last stroke starts at the line of the 7'th stroke, while Sukesada started the 8'th stroke a little earlier so it crosses the 7'th stroke. Talk about the devil being in the details ...

Perfect timing for yet another "which is Shôshin, which is Gimei?" exercise like Reinhard posted a short while ago. The examples I attached are from the same magazine ("Me no Me") Reinhard used, an article written by Mr. Tanobe of the NBTHK. One is genuine, the other is not.

Paul, the first pic says "Shintô Kotô Taikan - Kotô (volume)". The author seems to be Kawaguchi, but I can't see the given name clearly. Edit: oops, Koichi beat me to it!

Stupid as I am, I tend to trust Japanese research over Westerners who run around in cardboard armor, playing Samurai. Edo period lists of Kamon seem to be especially untrustworthy, but according to the material at hand the Ashikaga used the "Maru no Uchi ni Futatsu Hiki" as their primary Kamon, and the "Go Shichi Kiri" only when in Kyōto. The Toyotomi's primary Kamon was the "Go San Kiri". But then again, what do I know? Stripping off my heavy layer of sarcasm for a minute: it's pretty easy to come up with a Kamon for a certain family, but it doesn't work the other way around. Most Kamon were used by more than one family (and this is an understatement!), so without supporting evidence, it's almost impossible to be certain from which family an item decorated with a Kamon came.

http://www.seaox.com/

The following Tsuba shows 3 forceps for extracting teeth, and is signed on the Omote "Tame Ko-sensei Kinsaku" - respectfully made for Dr. Klein. It is believed to have been made for Pete's ancestors before they immigrated to the US via Germany (where the second picture, a painting depicting medicus Bonifaz Klein [the elder], was recently discovered).

The system is so easy it's almost laughable - you devote your live to scientific research and art appreciation until your peers agree that you actually know what you're talking about. However, I recommend the following method if you want to achieve the same results without spending too much time studying (it's called "applied sciences"):

I always thought that's the main reason we have you on board!? We obviously have different opinions (and that's what we're discussion here in lieu of cold, hard facts - one can't simply count, weight and measure knowledge [at least if not on the same or close level]), and that's all good. I also don't want to drag this discussion on forever, just two comments: 1) It didn't take me long to find a few examples in my Japanese auction and sales exhibition catalogs of wrong Sayagaki attributions by Kanzan: Norishige instead of Tametsugu (happens to the best of us), and Kanemitsu instead of Aoe (ouch!). And I remember having seen many more, but never a similar blunder by Tanzan. 2) I hear stories now for many years about the NBTHK issuing at almost every Jûyô-Shinsa papers to two certain dealers. Well, those two know their stuff inside out and then some, so big surprise they get many high level swords through Shinsa! They are obviously the envy of many other dealers, who turn their frustration of not being able to achieve the same results into accusations of bribery. And whenever I ask for examples, I'm told "they're out there" without any more details. My motto: put up or shut up! The Japanese Sword Dealer's Association is basically an old wife's club, everybody above a certain level knows every deal that's going on, and when there's nothing of substance to discuss, they make up rumors. Having bought a sword from one dealer and being congratulated on the choice by another the very next day, or having a discussion with a dealer that's picked up by another the next week happened more often to me than I care to recall.

Reinhard, you are of course right about early and late (like Nisshû) Honami papers. But only looking at the Kyôhô Meibutsuchô, you'll find quite a few attributions that are more than a little doubtful. I remember asking Mr. Tanobe about a famous blade on display in the museum, if it would get the same attribution if submitted for Shinsa nowadays; he smiled and said "maybe not." Research came a long way since Edo period days, and many wrong attributions "back in the day" are perfectly honest mistakes. Some were deliberate to curry favors with high ranking people. Some were made under pressure - even in the not too distant past, one of the reasons why the current Jûyô Shinsa system was introduced. What I was trying to say is that I would bet my money any time on the NBTHK, no matter what an Origami or Sayagaki says. The level of expertise there supasses anything from the past, including Kunzan and Kanzan (I've seen my share of blunders with his attributions as well). I wish I had a fraction of the knowlege of the latter two gentlemen, but that's besides the point. It would be sad if research would stand still, and fortunately it doesn't, new insights are gained frequently. Primus inter pares is without any doubt Tanzan, who for quite some time now went way above his teachers. Yes, the occasional screw-ups happen there as well, but those are few and far between, and usually on a level most of us will never come near to. Complains about wrong attributions come mostly from people who simply don't like being told that their sword or fitting is not of the standard they hoped for, and the badmouthing begins - nothing is more entertaining than a little slander, and criticizing "the experts" makes one look like an "expert" in one's own right.

... and finally an overdue apology to Stephen: sorry for hijacking your thread!

Sure, we're still happily married and share everything - sharing our live means I'm married, and she's happy.

Me too ...

Yup, you got me right be the [[self-edited vulgar expression for male reproductive organs]]. I talked just today to Barry Hennick about my obvious inability to finish articles beyond the 95% stage. Anal as I am, I'm reluctant to publish until an article is 100% water-proof. And since 118% of all Germans have difficulties with percentage calculation, I'm double-screwed! :lol:

Absolutely, I always wanted to become a persona non grata ...

FWIW, here's part of a Sayagaki on a sword I own which was done by Honami Nisshû after he became a living national treasure for comparison. His polish is much better than his caligraphy.

Quite the opposite, the Honami family is well known for f@cking up countless attributions, and issuing "favorable" papers for high ranking people throughout the Edo period and even well into the 20'th century. No papers should be viewed with more suspicion than Honami Origami.