Viper6924

I was told by a very knowledgeable person in Japan to always light some top-quality incense every time a new item arrived from Japan. A way to honor the original owners. Jan

Taking into account that I usually bring with me unloaded matchlocks to our meetings, this razor-sharp sword might indeed warrent some sort of protections for my dear colleagues at the club :) Jan

For once I will be bringing a sword with me Jan

A well-written article and a very sound comment by Piers. I always had a slight problem with the notion that the samurai ”gave up” their guns. They never gave up the gun, they gave up the quest to develope more modern guns. And when I say ”they” I of course mean the Tokugawa shogunate. The single thing occupying the mind of the shogunate during the Edo period was to keep the status que that they thought was the way to keep them in power. They had no interests what so ever to invite new technology that might change this. However, the quest to develope the matchlock, was continued in many domains during this period. The main aim was to create long-range matchlocks. I have a matchlock made in 1864. After a quick inspection, it doesn’t take long to realise that the Japanese pushed the envelope regarding the matchlock as far as they could. It’s the perfect matchlock in every way. That the rest of the modern world had moved on, was quite apparently of no concern to the local samurai that ordered this specific gun. Jan

Thanks for your kind words, Anthony. It means a lot to hear that the content is well received. These encouragements will fuel my future projects. Jan

Oh dear God! Someone taken a perfectly good Seki-ryu Tan zutsu and ruined it. I hope there is a special place in matchlock hell reserved for the person who did that to the barrel. Is that paint? And what to say about RI Auction? 10-15000 dollar. Well, I guess they are in dire need of a matchlock appraiser... Jan

The last 10 Monme Seki-ryu matchlock I saw for sale was at an auctionhouse in London. It was a very similar looking gun to the one you have, Bob. If my memory doesn’t fail me the asking price was set to around £4000. It didn’t get any bids so I guess the market didn’t agree with that price. The question of decoration vs non-decoration is an interesting one. I guess it was often down to personal taste of the person ordering the gun. But as Piers says, military-grade matchlocks tend to be less decorated than hunting and practise guns. Bling or not to bling, that’s the question Jan

You welcome, Bob! This is one of the main reasons behind this forum; to share information and assist whenever possible. Malcolm, thanks for your kind words. You know they are appreciated! Jan (sometimes it’s hard hitting the right key)

Next time please sign with your real name. Makes for a much more friendly forum. Well, I must say that you’ve done very well for a beginners gun. What you have there is a very healthy looking 10-monme Seki-ryu matchlock. A quite rare style of matchlock. The first model was made shortly after the Summer-siege of 1615 by a former retainer of the Yonezawa domain by the name of Seki Hachiza’emon Yukinobu. He more or less copied the design from his Sensei in Yonezawa. This particular stule of matchlock was made all through the Edo period. Elongated trigger guard and an iron ramrod is first and foremost what makes this gun stand out amongst other matchlocks. I’m sure the signature on top of the barrel can be translated by someone gifted in the Japanese language. As to books, the output is rather limited. I would rec Sugawa-san’s book ”The Japanese Matchlock 1” as a behinners book in English. If you look carefully here under the Matchlock-section of this forum you will be able to find another book in English that might help you further your knowledge regarding matchlocks Congrats to a very nice first gun. Wish I’d been as lucky back when I stated collect matchlocks. Jam

Thanks Jesper. Hope you will enjoy the content. My ”signature-pen” will ready for our next NBTHK-meeting in December Jan

Well spotted, Piers. I was quite surprised to learn that several of the members did not wear ear plugs. I had a pair in my pocket but forgot to put them in... A 30 Monme blast later and my eardrums went on a temporary vaccation. Jan

Here´s what happens when you ignite 30g of black powder shoved down the barrel of a 10 Monme (1.9cm caliber) matchlock from Yonezawa. Bear in mind that the average load used by other reenactment-groups in Japan, with a similar caliber, range from about 10-12g. You need to know what you're doing placing your face that close to an volcano Pictures from the first training of the year 2016 just outside of Yonezawa. Jan

Just discovered that Lulu offers a new discount on books. So please feel free to support the suffering writers of the world and make a good deal on the same time :) 20% off all print products. Exp Nov 2. Code: SAVETWENTY Jan

When writing a book, apart from the writing-process itself, the most important part is of course the research. Which for me meant a lot of sitting around waiting for my questions to be translated from English to Japanese and then wait some more for the answers to be translated from Japanese to English and finally forwarded to me. Not always the most exciting part of the job. But one thing that I will take with me and truly cherish from this project, was all the people I met along the way. Don´t want to spoil some of the things that I write about in the book, but this episode is not in it, so... As part of my research, I was invited by Yonezawa City Hall in order to further my understanding of this area and its history. I was provided with a translator and a photographer from the City Hall. These two lovely people went with me wherever I wanted to go. Only about 20 min in on our first day together, we ended up watching a group of men performing a matchlock-practise. This was of course a treat for me, to finally see and above all hear the roar of the mighty Yonezawa matchlock. After the group had finished and was about to start packing up their gear, the photographer was quiet excited and started pushing me in the back saying "go talk, go talk". Firstly, not many people in Yonezawa speaks English. Even a basic "hello" is an achievement amongst the locals. Secondly my Japanese might be good for ordering a Bic Mac in Tokyo, but def not up to the task at hand. With my translator strangely absent from the scene, I approached the group. My presence didn't exactly spark outbursts of joy among the group of Yonezawa's finest. Most of them did their best to avoid me by looking away or getting overly interested in cleaning their guns. (This picture speaks more than a hundred words) I would def file this as an "awkward moment", so it was time to break barriers. I approached one of the guys just about to pack his 30-monme matchlock in a bag. With my brain going 110% I uttered the words "nice 30 monme" in something resembling Japanese. You could have heard a pin drop. Suddenly all eyes was fixed on me. Encouraged that they seemed to have understood my initial comment I continued with something in the line of "late Edo period, right" finishing of with "a very nice gun". The guy holding the gun could't have looked more proud. (What a compliment can do to turn a frown upside down) Suddenly I was surrounded by smiling faces wanting to speak to the strange foreigner. I was allowed to hold their guns whilst me eyes desperately searched for the translator. The rest of the group was ordered back by their leader so I got get a picture together with them all. (One of the boys!) This was just one of many incredible meetings I encountered during my days up in Yonezawa. This specific one took just 2-3 minutes from start to finish. The harsh northern people turned out to be amongst the warmest and most welcoming I met during my many trips to Japan. Share an common interest and respect local traditions and the most unexpected door might open up. A lot of this I have my dear friend Piers to thank for. If ever in doubt, I always ask myself "what would Piers do in a similar situation" and so far it has worked like a Swiss clock Thanks again to all of you that already bought a copy of the book. It´s quite overwhelming, to be honest. Jan

Peter, a cold beer will def be offered at any venue where our paths crosses in the future. Really hope you all will like it and take from it a gained understanding of the matchlock and how it shaped the future for the samurai of Yonezawa. Looking forward to the first book-reports in about two weeks Jan

I will put together a PDF-version a bit later on, which will be avalible on Lulu. Just need to sort out some design-issues converting it from print to digital. I will let you know when it’s done. Jan

It’s really rewarding to see the book reaching the four corners of the world. The digital age def brings amazing possibilities for all the budding authors out there. Now I just hope the encouraging words continues after the book has been read Jan

Thanks for your encouraging words, gentlemen! The initial respons has been amazing. It’ quite apparent that a publication in English dealing with the Japanese matchlock was long overdue. I’m sure we can sort something out, Brian! Contact me via PM whenever You have the time. And ignore my last PM. At the time I was deep under the earth which played havoc with my cell-reception Jan

Dear Members! I´m very happy to be able to annonunce that my new book "The Yonezawa Matchlock - Mighty Gun of the Uesugi Samurai" is now out for sale. This project has been a true labor of love which I have been working on for several years. Being a student of Japanese history for as long as I can remember, my aim with this book has been to tell a story about the fascinating and often overlooked world of the Japanese matchlock. In order to be able to place the matchlock or Teppo into an historical context, I have opted to focus parts of this book on the history of the famous Uesugi-clan and to follow them from the beginning of the 15th century and all the way until the fall of the samurai. The number of books written in English about the Japanese matchlock is not impressive by any standards, so I´m hoping that this publication will bring some new and much needed insights into this specific field of study. The book has 243 pages with some added b/w pictures. The table of content is as follows: Foreword by Piers Dowding Author´s Note Introduction 1. The beginning 2. The rise of Kenshin 3. Introduction of the firearm 4. The fourth battle of Kawanakajima 5. Death of a dragon 6. Uesugi Kagekatsu 7. Sekigahara 8. Birth of the Yonezawa matchlock 9. The origin 10. Osaka 1614-15 11. From the brink of distaster 12. Gunnery schools in Yonezawa 13. Structures of gun manufacturing in Yonezawa 14. Western guns 15. The final battle 16. Keeping the tradition alive References Picture references A lot of the content in this book has never been published in English before and is the result of four years of research and several trips to Japan. Many people have helped me in my quest to finish this book. From this forum alone I have gotten invaluble help from Piers Dowding, Ian Bottomley and Markus Sesko. Further information about this book together with the possibility to order a copy can be found on the below link: http://www.lulu.com/shop/jan-pettersson/the-yonezawa-matchlock-mighty-gun-of-the-uesugi-samurai/hardcover/product-23384395.html I would be very happy and grateful if You would order this book directly from Lulu.com because as many of You already know, Amazon deducts almost 75% of the royalties per sold book I hope You allwill enjoy this book as much as I have enjoyed writing it. Thanks! Jan

One thing I know is that these covers are rare. I have included a picture from an old exihibition catalouge. To my knowledge this is one of only a very few still extant. This one is made from metal but I know that I've seen another one which I belive was made from lacquered paper or leather. Jan

To someone like me, who truly knows how much time and effort you put into your work, this comes as no surprise. This "official" stamp of approval was long overdue. Jan

I guess I should have posted both sides. Judging by the overall condition plus the fact that this ladle was given as a present from one of the leading authorities of this field in Japan, I'm very comfortable to date this as a Bakumatsu-period piece. Jan

A veritabel buffé of lovely things on that table, Piers I think you might be on to something regarding the twisted handle absorbing some of the heat generated from the fire. Jan

Here's an example of a large ladle. The twisted handle gives it a more ornate look. Most of these ladles comes with wooden handles. Still in very good condition with a nice patina on it. A true utilitarian object. Jan

You are a wise man, Justin I agree with you. This is too small a caliber for hunting either animals or humans. More like a modern day BB-gun. Looking at the absence of a patina might suggest that this gun been subjected to a "polish" during its latter life. Jan