Grey Doffin

Joakim, If the sword is shipped in a saya, without a tsuka and the mekugi through the tsuka and nakago, the saya won't protect the blade; it stands a good chance of seriously damaging the blade. If the package were dropped the blade could crash down inside the saya and shatter its kissaki (point) in the botom of the saya. If it's not to late to stop the shipment, here is how to properly pack the blade and saya. Wrap the scabbard in a few layers of newspaper and tape. Tightly wrap the blade all over in quite a few layers of newspaper, making sure that the paper is folded over both ends, and tape shut. Now, securely tape the blade bundle to the scabbard bundle, with the point of the blade above the bottom of the scabbard, and it's ready to pack and ship. To answer your question, you need to have a shira-saya made for the blade, and a habaki also if there is none. The chances of finding one to fit the blade are astronomically small. I could suggest someone in the States; maybe someone in Europe could suggest someone there (closer to Stockholm). I know you've spent your budget but now you have a responsibility. It is your duty to see that the blade isn't damaged; it needs a properly made shira-saya and habaki. Grey

If the seller is legit and wants to sell the sword, he'll give you lots more information than one lousy picture by which to judge the sword. Grey

If the work of the blade is right for an important early tachi, the shinsa team most likely will paper it to the early smith or school. If the work isn't important or the blade is in bad shape (very tired maybe), then it is unlikely to get a paper to any smith, school, or time period. Grey

Brian, I think some time this fall I will have exciting news to post on the board. Grey

I would send someone to pick up the sword ASAP, without mentioning that there were no scratches when seen at the show. The last thing you want to do is back the guy into a corner, where he'll be forced to scratch the blade in order not to be proven a liar. Very unfortunate situation you've gotten into; I wish you and the sword the best. I also wish I knew who we're talking about; we all need to know. Grey

My index has an Ashu Sukeshige of Shin-Shinto: Compton auctions at Christies, volume 2, page 220 Zuikan Tomei Soran by Iida, page 210. Grey

Yes, we need articles. John Eliyas is taking over as editor and we want to get him started well. If you care to contribute you can send articles to him: eliyasj@comcast.net Thanks, Grey And on the subject of the San Francisco sword show: don't any of you post juicy stuff for sale here on the board until we all get home from the show.

All good points; an interesting discussion. I have to side with Mark on this one. If I were going to add a fake cut test to a blade to up its value, no way I'm going to do something totally out of the norm. I'm going to do it in gold and use a known name. Grey

Does anyone know the significance of the inlay being silver, rather than the usual gold? Grey

Nihonto Zuikan, page 683 is the only hit for Tomomitsu with that Kanji for Tomo in my index. Grey

You did well to put a handle on the sword, no matter what it looks like. Without a handle and the mekugi passing through the nakago, the blade is vulnerable; there is nothing holding the kissaki away from the bottom inside of the saya and the kissaki is very easily chipped. Swords shouldn't be stored inside a saya without the tsuka. Grey

Not much. Grey

Ditto from me; that opening could swallow a whole bunch of money. Grey

I try to arrive late afternoon, after a mostly sleepless flight. Fumes keep me going till bedtime, I sleep soundly all night, and wake the next morning on Japan time. Works wonderfully for me; I take no pills and suffer no jet lag. Grey

Joakim, $1,000 isn't enough to buy you something you can love. Save the money and add to it when you can. In the mean time, read and study; find other collectors who will let you visit and look. $2,000 and knowledge can buy a good, lovable wakizashi, and $3,000 with knowledge will do the same for a katana. It is possible to do this with less money, but it requires more knowledge. Grey

I wouldn't even grace this piece of poop with the term reproduction. Chinese or Thai fake with a cosmetic temper line; nothing better. You really need to spend some money on books and serious time in study before you buy a sword. Otherwise you're as likely to waste your money as you are to get something worthwhile. Grey

John Tirado and Brian Tschurnega (surely misspelled) in the US. Grey

But why was the blade shortened in the first place? Certainly not to fit the army scabbard as that would have been made to fit the blade. I'm still troubled by the shortening; I see no logic to it. Grey

Would someone be so kind as to post a picture or scan of page 241 of Nihonto Jiten by Tokuno? I need to see the mei of nidai Bitchu no Kami Yasuhiro. Thanks, Grey

Koshirae is the mounts/furniture. Grey

Show it to someone who can tell, and even then it might be only an educated guess without a proper polish (or at least a polished window). There's not much I could write here that would equal years of study and experience. Retemper can be a complicated subject. It's not always obvious if a sword is retempered or not. Still curious if anyone has a better answer for why this was shortened. Grey

Page 69 in Fujishiro Grey

Hi Fritz, It looks to me like the sword has been shortened about 2", and that it was originally a 22.5" wakizashi. I can't think of a good reason why anyone would do that to a good piece. If it were originally a short katana and someone wanted a wakizashi it could make sense. During the Edo period only Samurai were allowed to carry a katana (length of edge at 24" or greater). It could be that a merchant owned a katana and had it shortened to be street legal. But why make a long wakizashi into a slightly less long wakizashi, especially if you partially hide the horimono by doing so? This is a red flag for me; unexplainable shortening can be a sign of retempering (done to disguise evidence of the retemper). I don't think you want to try for polish and paper unless you have very good information that it makes sense. Can anyone else think why this sword would have been shortened, if not to hide mizukage? I'd be interested to hear what you think. Grey

Fritz, Can you tell us the length of the cutting edge, from the tip to the notch at the back in a straight line? The current length might tell us something about the condition. Grey

If you were thinking about buying that sword you need to think about buying some good books. Read and study first, read and study some more second, then maybe you can buy a sword. Otherwise, your mistakes may be costly. Grey