Geraint

The ground perhaps?

The texturing appears to have been made with the usual y shaped punch. I seem to recall that this was introduced by a particular school.........? http://jameelcentre.ashmolean.org/collection/7/10237/10391 Not that this would point to the work being by that school, the filling is almost certainly a later treatment the tsuba, no? All the best

And not to cross threads but it has a nice habaki Don't you find that whenever the media cover something that you are knowledgeable about you find yourself wincing at the inaccuracies? All the best.

Dear Greg. You quite often find these marks, they are assembly numbers so that groups of parts remain together during the mounting process All the best

Better and better!

Dear Joshman. (You should be able to add your name to your posts which is asked of us here). I don't think anyone is going to be able to tell you very much given the quality of these photos. I can't even tell if the kashira is ensuite or a horn one, I can't see any shitodome not that that would matter a great deal. Who carried the sword these were mounted on is impossible to say and would be largely irrelevant to me. The quality of the work is what counts. Look forward to some better pictures when they arrive. All the best.

Peter that's lovely! I assume it's in iron? Perhaps the distinct punch used for the smaller flower heads might lead to a specific maker. Enjoy.

Dear Chris. If you browse auction catalogues for long enough you will come across quite a number of standard designs, sometimes apparently identical but attributed to different schools just to be confusing. As Brian has said this is not uncommon. It is always nice to think that you have a unique work of art but that isn't the reality in many cases. It may of course be that your friend purchased this set from NIhontocraft or they might have come from another source entirely. If you have been looking at Nara work what about this set leads you to the conclusion that they are by a Nara master? Have a look at this kodzuka and see what you think. http://www.toukenkomachi.com/image/B021016-2.jpg The price of the set on Nihontocraft and the fact that they were identified as, "Nara school" should be considered. Have fun.

Dear Rob. I agree with Ken, a nice thing. As a matter of interest what is the kasane and what happens to the kasane at or about the machi? All the best.

Dear Mike. I hope this one works out for you. Interesting to see one rope edged seppa with an otherwise standard set of mounts, I wonder why? At the least you have got a nice set of koshirae with a decent blade. If the seller knows what he is talking about then I would have expected a picture of the nakago, on the other hand he might not be very knowledgeable, in which case your research is the only thing that will assure you that the blade is older. One seller in the UK has a listing which says, "This is a family blade with clear family name down the tang, on the other side has the makers mark with world war period stamp. Family and makers name are completely intact, a lot of these name were damaged or missing when they shortened them for use in WW2. This is a much older blade most probably 18th century." A certain amount of confusion here. What he is selling is quite a nice Showato, signed and dated. No blame attached, he is a militaria dealer with a limited experience of Japanese swords, why would I expect him to know it all? At least he gives adequate photos of the sword including the nakago. I'm sure we all look forward to decent pictures of the blade when it arrives and nothing quite beats that moment when you open the parcel. All the best.

Wondering if it might be Kanetada? Might just be the photograph but have a careful look at the kissaki.

"Step away from the tsuba, hands behind your back and step away!" All the best

Dear Ed. I had some success a while ago with kodzuka mounted as cutlery, the same approach might work for you. A jar of very hot water, pop the kodzuka into this but leave the blade out, give it a minute or two to heat up and then put the blade into a vice, wrap some cloth around the kodzuka so you don't burn yourself and slowly but firmly pull the kodzuka. You may have to repeat a few times. Hope this works for you. All the best.

Not convinced about the groove but I love the hada! All the best.

Hi Sylvain. It's hard a hard life. The gyaku takanoha yasurime might help pin things down as they are not all that common. From what I can see, and you only show one side of the blade, this is not nagamaki zukuri, it is just that the yokote has become obscure, I think it had quite a large kissaki which might point to the later smith that John suggested. It is hard to tell from the images but some of the corrosion at the monouchi looks quite deep, you probably need the opinion of a polisher as to whether it can be saved. What is the other side like? All the best.

Dear Ted, I have noted a significant number of blades sold by Aoi Arts which have two sets of papers; one the older papers that yours has and a second, more modern paper, which none the less arrives at the same conclusion. I think Arnold has a valid point, equally I think Aoi Art were being careful when they suggested that the signature was unreliable, especially for a first generation mei of a highly regarded smith. Would it change the way you appreciate the sword to have a new paper? Financially it might change the market value. It's hard to resist the lure of having a blade by a famous smith, it's also hard to resit the urge to prove that you have scored by snapping up an unregarded treasure, that's how we work as humans for some reason. Does the sword, as a blade and setting aside the mei, shout, "Quality!" You have it in hand and will see much more than we can even given Tsuruta san's oshigata. By the way am I the only one who would like to see the koshirae? All the best.

I think he already has, that's where the image came from.

Dear David, If you want to confirm or deny our suspicions then can you remove the habaki? Compare the habaki with your swords that you know to be genuine, if you can't remove it then worry, if you can and the machi do not line up then also worry. Can you see any features in the blade like hada or hamon? You might post photos of the fittings if you are using them to confirm the origin of the sword but the habaki is a dead give away for most Chinese fakes. Not too long ago I viewed a sword at an auction and from four feet away I would have handed over the cash, it wasn't until I looked at it in hand that I spotted it as a fake. The copies are getting better all the time, especially with regard to the fittings. Hope this helps.

Neil that looks great! An alternative style of wrap which has been lacquered rather than painted I would suggest and really nice ishime lacquer saya, what a nice thing. Have a look at this for styles of wrap and you will find this, http://www.tsukamaki.net/gallery1.htm A really nice style of mount, I'm curious as to the blade it houses. All the best

Hi Neil, Great to be sharing the discoveries. Hate to disagree with Ken but I wouldn't make a judgement based on two mekugi ana, it might be a simple as a second one drilled for a new mounting. So, the nakago jiri looks well finished, often suriage blades have kiri jiri, straight cut, but not always. Two mekugi ana and do I see the remains of a hi in your third photo? Do you see any change in the thickness of the blade, looking from the back, just above the machi? Whatever we decide about its origins it looks like a nice find in nice koshirae. Enjoy!

Hi Jason Your yari would usually be described as a makura yari or pillow yari, or as a kago yari or palanquin yari. As with most things Japanese classification is not an exact science and it is quite possible to find small yari mounted as full sized polearms. It is just possible that the mark in your third image is the character for Shimosaka, compare to the signature here, http://www.nihonto.us/SHIMOSAKA%20SUYARI.htm. Your yari would be Edo period, I can't pin it down to any more specific time. Hope this helps. All the best

At least they only did it to a Showato.............

Hi Neil. Nice find! Any chance of some more photos including the bare blade? All the best

Dear Steve. You have probably already looked at these but try this post, about three down for the full blade shot, http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/15304-shinto-wakizashi-in-red-gold-koshirae-nbthk-hozon/ And for your interest this one, http://www.nihontocraft.com/Three_Shinto_Cutters.html I'm not sure I see anything that would make me think this was not the 1600's one. Enjoy! All the best.

Dear Bojan. I can't ell from the photo whether this is some sort of skin wrapping or a lacquer texture technique. If is is a wrapping then the seam would usually be on the back and often marked by a thin line, is this so for yours? All the best.