ROKUJURO

Greg, the normal angle is 90°, and as far as I know, axes are basically tools in Japan. However, there are exceptions.

David, the gold is not inlay and it is very probably not gold lacquer either, which is found mostly on non-metallic surfaces. Did you think of simple 'fire-gilding' with mercury? Looking at the pictures, I do not see hints for an especially old or artistically important KOZUKA, but I am no expert and would be happy to learn.

The general shape is known from India and Persia. This axe does not seem to be very old, so I ask if it could be a firefighter's tool from China or perhaps Japan?

Hamish, if it was indeed a forged blade, it would very probably show these effects in several places. Is there more of this to be seen?

Medar, although the photos are not well enough focused to be sure, I think Geraint has hit the nail right between the eyes. To me the blade does not look Japanese nor Burmese, but it might be a part of a European sabre, and I think the year 1756 is genuine to the blade, so not applied later. Probably the weapon has made quite a journey in its life, and as in many cases the story is half the value of the item!

Rich, unless it was you who caused the bad condition of the blade there is no reason to be ashamed. We are not curious to see destroyed items, but in many cases we can help to decide if a blade could possibly be restored. Looking at the NAKAGO, it is probably an older blade, and it would be a pity not to make a preservation attempt.

An interesting find, thank you for sharing! I would have liked to know what kind of blade that was; probably not a traditionally made one. The results of the hardness tests are nevertheless surprising, and I wonder how they found out that: 5) Temper: Tests showed the blade had been air quenched from a temperature of approximately 1600 degrees F. . There are a number of ways to quench a blade and I think it is very difficult if not impossible to differentiate between a blade quenched in a warm liquid medium and another blade having been cooled in cold air (depending on the travel speed of the air).

Looks more like KANMURI OTOSHI ZUKURI.

Darcy, thank you for sharing these spectacular photos of a blade! Amazing! I have never been very fond of HORIMONO except BOHI, but this is another exception! Especially the bamboo fits nicely to the shape of the blade. The execution of the plum tree very close to the HAMON is masterfully done. In my opinion, the signature on the NAKAGO is in contrast to this work. It looks as if someone made his first trial with hammer and chisel!

Do you have a website? Where can I see photos?

The second starts with HACHI..... See also http://www.jssus.org/nkp/bonji.html

David, perhaps if you provided some more photos it would be easier to help. What is the shape/cross section of the MIMI? Is that corrosion in tiny spots I see on the surface? My first impression is: not KYO SUKASHI and probably not OWARI, but I am often wrong.

Nick, as far as I know, all Manta are rays, but not all rays are Manta. Have a look in the previous posts on this subject, there are some scientific names mentioned. Addition: Not all rays are stingrays. SAME is made from pearl rays.

Steve, I have the impression that this MEI is clumsily chiselled. It would be a good idea to show the whole blade (SUGATA) plus the important details, so we can try a closer guess.

Denis, I am very sorry! I made a mistake in quoting and corrected it by now, but I am confident that the members here who know you did not suspect you to polish Japanese blades with Chinese marble.

Gabe, I sincerely hope you will be polishing cars or optical lenses but not Japanese blades!

Tobias, before any attempt to start making a TSUKA (or having one made), read here: http://home.earthlink.net/~steinrl/kosh ... shirae.htm. It is not so difficult to make a 'handle' on a sword, but you may want an aesthetically and technically satisfying solution. The style and the age of the KOSHIRAE should be respected, and this requires a lot of special knowledge and long experience.

Let's roll the dice: Could No. 2 be UJISHIGE?

David, careful reading can prevent misunderstandings! You will find that Justin most likely did not intend an insult: You wrote quite correctly:....I wanted to share a Kinko (shakudo) tsuba which I consider the highlight of my 2014 Tampa Show..... He did not read the 'my' and so interpreted your statement as generally 'best of show' which it probably wasn't. I hope you will find this information helpful....

Fred, Hohoho, what a nice HOO bird! I like this phoenix KOGAI, looks well made! The dragon TSUBA looks, hum, unusual to my old eyes. What is the material? Could it be a recent production? The SEPPA DAI seems to be untouched while the NAKAGO ANA has TAGANE marks from fitting it to a blade. The iron TOSHO style TSUBA was certainly a nice one, but the surface was in my opinion not treated with hammer and punch but with heavy corrosion. The flower is UME no HANA (round petals), and what you see as a hot stamp was probably carefully chiselled out. But others with more competence may see this differently.

Grev, it is always interesting and educational to see samples of this museum's collection, so thank you again! Even if these shown today are considered HAMAMONO, No. 3 has been used a lot as it seems. Are the insects and spiders on this one mounted to be moveable? Very fancy - the SAMURAI was probably very proud of it!

Grev, it may have to do with the fact that the photos are not very helpful as the light seems to be too direkt. I think it would be better to have the light from the side, so that the signature grooves formed by the chisel are in the 'shade'. You might be able to further improve the readability of the MEI if you brush them with a toothbrush so loose red rust comes out. The signature of TSUBA No. 5 seems to start with CHOSHU which would comply with the style.

Theme is probably 'Frutti di mare'. The colour of the KOZUKA seems quite uniform on the photos, so I would like to ask if perhaps the patination was lost in this piece? I have rarely seen a plain copper red surface like this.

Thank you, Ford! A wonderful text, showing a deep understanding! Nice language as well, a proof of artistic skill in his field.

Thank you, Adam, for showing this wonderful KOZUKA! I like the subject a lot and admire how the limited space was used by the artist! Concerning the subject of the Japanese smiths, I would like to mention that they are (or were) probably not more talented than those of other cultures. In my observation it has to do with the fact that Japanese SHOKUNIN in general have a different approach to their respectice crafts compared with the West (in modern times). Japanese craftmen used to see their work finished when it was very well done all over (even inside!). We in the West have developped an attitude to see a work finished when it just served the purpose and enough time was invested. A Japanese smith has to learn his craft to a perfection that may exceed the technical requirements of the item he is forging. This may come down in many cases to a kind of aesthetics or beauty even in a simple workpiece, and this may be obvious even to a non-specialist. In this respect, the Japanese crafts as taught over centuries, are still paradigms for everyone striving for true mastership, at least in my eyes.