ROKUJURO

Beautiful TSUBA and wonderful photography!

Florian, I have the same feelings with this one:

Yes, family name YOSHIDA is what I read.

Peter, I understand your criticism well. It has in my opinion to do with a general superficiality and a lack of feeling and interest for detail. People don't study anymore - they are masters of the craft after a short while of self-educated trial and error - mostly the latter! On YouTube you can watch many videos of wannabe bladesmiths, who show how they hammer their first knife blade. Some even call that a tutorial! Referring to the forging, to a certain extent this has to do with the fact that many crafts are dying out in Western countries. Often there are no real masters left to carry the tradition on, This is probably not so severe in Japan, but the problem is known as well. I had a lengthy discussion in a German forging forum. Someone showed a sword blade which he optimistically called a KATANA. I asked him about his criteria in naming a blade so, and I got a shitstorm from other forum members, calling me pedantic, not helpful, and discouraging his efforts. Not only Japanese masters admit to the fact, that learning never stops in your life (JIRO dreams of SUSHI....), but it seems that there is a deplorable tendency to search for shortcuts. Looking deeply into a process or a subject, investing time and efforts for the benefit of knowledge and quality, really studying, seems to have become old-fashioned.

Florian, my opinion is that this feature is mainly found in TSUBA with a symmetrical design as sometimes seen in OWARI TSUBA. The centerline emphasizes the balance.

Lukas, it may well be that the MEI (signature) is not from the "real" smith KANETSUNE, but that does not mean that the sword is bad or a fake! It is probably indeed a SHINTO blade, but a nice one, and it is in MINO style.

Alton, it was not the glaze itself, but the decoration painting material. The glaze on your TOKKURI is probably a simple feldspar glaze with high rice-hull ash content. As this TOKKURI was very probably raw glazed (no biscuit firing), the GOSU decoration was painted on the raw glaze. Cobalt can be a dangerous substance when it has been transformed in radioactive plants or laboratories, but radioactive isotopes do normally not occur in nature. However, it is suspected to cause lung cancer when you inhale it. "Trapped" in a glaze, cobalt is not harmful at all.

Alton, if I see the colours correctly, the underglaze cobalt is probably of the old GOSU type. In early time in Japan, this was made from a stone containing cobalt, but it contained also small amounts of manganese and iron. This lead to a "softer" blue with a greyish hue. This stone came from quarries high up in the mountains, and when these were exhausted already in medieval times, smaller stones containing these minerals (then called KAWAISHI) were still found in the rivers. But as these became more and more difficult to obtain, some potters even took unusual measures, stealing tombstones (made from this stone) from graveyards! Later, the cobalt was supplied from mines in Persia which was much purer and had higher cobalt content, resulting in a strong, 'hard' blue as we know it from later porcelains. So, to make a long story come to an end, I think that this is probably an older piece of ceramic, dating to the 17th century at earliest. But I have also to say that the old GOSU type was copied/re-composed, so it is difficult to give a safe assessment. The same applies to the foot. The technique of using a coarse textile to prevent sticking to the working plate is known from Japan, but also from south-east Asia and Korea.

Don, I have the impression that this might be a traditionally made blade, not very old - very late SHINTO JIDAI perhaps up to MEIJI. But in your case, I would try to look into that and do some research. Perhaps you can correspond with some experts here and have their opinion, when they can see the blade in person.

Robert, that is why they fitted a FUKURIN!

Greg, here in good old Germany, the bigger piano shops, who do repairs on these instruments, have them as scrap. Sometimes you can get them for free. Antler and bone work as well, by the way.

Don, why don't you leave the leather field cover off? Soak it with good leather oil or grease and let it saturate. Maybe that will lead to a longer life of this part. The fancy yellow leather shoe lace is a funky addition, but quite far from the original. It should not be necessary to use extreme force when taking the TSUKA off. Perhaps the handle does not fit properly, has dried out or something is inside that causes the problem. Please add your name to each post!

Yes, pic 7 was from a different blade which lead me to a possibly wrong assessment. Now. I would not exclude that this blade is traditionally made, but I need more close-ups of the HAMON, please.

Don, welcome to the NM board! Could we have a photo of the NAKAGO (tang) without the HABAKI, please? Just to be sure that it is what it looks like: a standard, not traditionally hand-forged blade from industrial steel with a HAMON that was produced by quenching the blade in oil. The whole sword seems to be in good condition.

Hengu, very difficult to see! Perhaps try better photos like the middle one, but full NAKAGO.

Sean, I like the blade. The polish seems to have a good balance with a not so 'heavy' KESHO, as far as I can see from the photos. But what about the chrysanthemum? Is it the angle of the photograph or is it really non-symmetrical?

Alton, it must be difficult for you to choose from so many CHAWAN when you want to have tea.....

Lex (is that your name?), welcome to the NMB! The ORIGAMI looks like the real ones from the NBTHK, but I cannot guarantee that the sword is related to it. The blade is of course an authentic one. The photos (not foto's) show a nice WAKIZASHI which probably will be a pleasure to own, but the main question is always: What do you know about it and what do you like? Can you appreciate what you have and can you care for it and preserve it so it will be in good condition for some 100 years more? Good luck with all your purchases!

Sergei, it is becoming interesting! I have to confess that the photos don't help me with an assessment, but I can tell you that you don't get such a surface with a hammer nor with a chisel. As a smith I should know! But any old TSUBA has this corrosion problem.

Jeremiah, 6 mm is not extreme. The SAN SUI theme of your TSUBA is known to have been used also by the KANEIE style/school.

Yes, what John said. It is very probably a layer of the KAWAGANE, and it is quite coarse and not well homogenized/folded. It would not affect the performance of the blade, but it looks quite unusual and not aesthetically satisfying. Nevertheless, it could be the "style" of this smith, so more research might be advisable.

Other than being polite, it is a rule here on NMB. Please read about board etiquette.

Sergei, I think the design is o.k., but the TSUBA looks more like KO KACHUSHI than TOSHO. My doubts are indeed the plate and the uniform corrosion, but this is just a feeling after only looking at photos. If it was a modern remake (which I can't decide), it was made by someone who studied TSUBA carefully and who is a good faker (in case he sells these as old and authentic).

dsol, please sign all posts at least with your first name plus an initial so we can address you politely. As you can see from the accompanying tag, the smith is KANEZUMI from NOSHU province. This may have been a Rikugun Jumei Tosho Swordsmith with family name SATO. But this needs to be researched further with the right books which I don't have.

Woodzy9370, the tang is signed ECHIGO (province) KUNIMITSU (name of the smith), I think. 1944 is correct. This might be a KAI GUNTO, depending on the mounting.