David

And a few more. If these are not the right type of pics let me know what you would like to see.

As requested, here are more pictures of the blade. It's tough to get good ones so hopefully these will look all right.

Grey and Jason, thank you both. I will wait and see if anyone else chimes in but that seems like a good measured approach. To be honest all of the wood on the sword is dry and brittle (including the handle), and working some of the rust off before I eventually re-assemble it will probably make the task less risky.

Thank you all for commenting. I am furiously reading trying to be able to keep up with the names, places and periods. Regarding the Mei being obscurred, there is a thick layer of rust abount an inch wide between the Mekugi Ana and the characters. Of course, everyone always emphasizes that you should never clean the rust off the tang so I suppose there is nothing I can do about it.

Piers, Forgive my ignorance, but is that an indicator of the age of the blade, or does it just suggest that the old characters were used?

Bugyotsuji...how old is "old"?

Harry, Thanks for the welcome and the link!

More pictures...

Jason, I did put a light coat of oil on the blade, but I'm afraid it wasn't well cared for between the war and when I received it about 10 years ago. During those previous years it sat in an attic in the midwest United States. For the past ten years it has been in storage (in the desert) but occasinally cleaned and oiled. By cleaned I just mean the blade wiped down. I will not scrub the tang, but the rust is so thick that it actually was very difficult for me to getthe handle off.

How's this?

Thanks...I tried the chalk but it just fell out immediately. I will try another method. In the mean time, here are a couple more pics of the blade.

Here is a pic of the Nakago. I know you can't see much, because I was unable to find a way to make the characters stand out. I am not familiar with the term "Utsuri".

I'll say "thanks" in advance to anyone that might offer an opinion about the origins of my sword. For background, I am not particularly concerned that what I have is not genuine. This sword has been in my family for over 50 years. My grandfather brought it back from Japan following the occupation. He died when I was very young, and other members of my family never learned any details about how he acquired it. I am posting a few pictures, but will tell you a few details that may not be apparent from looking at the pics. The Tsuba is very plain, I can see no markings on it at all, and it appears be made of iron. The Saya appears to have a 2 tone lacquered finish and steel fittings. The Ito appears to be black silk, and has the look of fabric that has been handled a lot, with an oily sheen to it. It is also frayed at the base of the handle, and the ends that were previously tucked in the Kashira have worn completely through, though the braid is still tied and intact. The blade is very sharp, and sharpened all the way down to Habaki. There is no arsenal stamp on the tang. There are characters engraved on the tang, but the top characters appear to be obscured by significant rust. The rust is all a dark red and/or orange color. There is a Hamon on the blade, which appears to be thin and of a uniform width the whole length of the blade. I can see no Hada on the blade, but the finish is so poor I cannot be certain there isn’t one. I know little to nothing about these swords, though as a student of military history I have enjoyed researching it. If I had to guess, I would say that it is from the war years or slightly earlier. I am very interested in hearing more informed opinions.