ROKUJURO

Clive, it may be the photo but this TSUBA has a strange look to it. The SEPPA DAI has some 'sunken-in' spots, and the surface of the carved monkeys has a uniform sheen as if it was coated or painted. I don't want to shout 'cast' without having held the TSUBA in hand, but it appears different from others that I have seen.

Jim, we should have stayed with the out-of-focus-photos because now it's clear that at least the MON are cast. However, there is a chance that the basic TSUBA plate might be an authentic one, having been 'upgraded'. I don't think the TSUBA's value was in fact increased by that measure, so depending on what you paid, it remains probably a souvenir, not an investment.

Jim, one sharp photo is much better than five out of focus!

Welcome to the NMB forum, Adam! Enjoy the wealth of information and experience assembled here! The members are always willing to help wherever needed, so please ask for advice in case you want to make a purchase. Although this is a NIHONTO forum we also have specialists of GUNTO on board.

Grev, if I get a bulk price, I'd like to take them all! No. 1 is not my favourite, but No. 2 is top of my list. Imagine if they were properly restored! Thanks for sharing, it is a nice opportunity to learn!

Robert, nice aquisition! The subject of your TSUBA seems to have been familiar in that school. There is a similar TSUBA being pictured in 'SUKASHI TSUBA by KOKUBO KENICHI on p. 104. It is signed NAGATO HAGI no JU NAKAI ZENSUKE TOMOTSUNE SAKU. Sources from the web say that the families of the KAWAJI, NAKAI, OKAMOTO, and some more, which were descended from the SHOAMI school, were the mainstream of TSUBA production in this area. If you are interested in researching about your TSUBA I would like to recommend you start with the NAKAI family.

Paul, there is no way other than to show the blade to an expert! That is not the next knife shop around the corner who might want to sharpen this very long knife, but someone who has experience in this special field. NBM provides a lot of useful addresses. The other side is what you could do yourself. Oil has the capacity to keep oxygen away from a metallic surface IF a) the layer is thick enough and b) the oil is adhesive enough to stay in place. Not every oil can provide this, and you should not put an oiled blade back in the scabbard as dust and particles will stick on the blade's surface. In the end, this can cause more damage by scratching and 'grinding' the blade. As far as I can see from the photos, the rust damage does not seem to go very deep, so all measures need not be decided today or this week. But in the long range somebody should polish a 'window' and see what you have. In the meantime a little bit of machine oil would do any harm, but will also not work wonders. Remove the HABAKI, get rid of the red rust on the NAKAGO (use you wife's toothbrush and a dry cotton rag), clean well also inside the HABAKI, and put on a little bit of oil.

I have no voice with this video. There could be a similarity between the OSHIGATA and the blade, but the condition of the latter does not allow a firm statement, I think.

Joe, I cannot read the MEI, but couldn't the uppermost character on the right be also read as KO (小)? Would that make more sense?

Bruno, Arnold Frentzel may be around there as his nickname is seattle1.

Keith, You probably mean TSUBA when you write tsubs? Your photos are not in focus, so there is not much to see and to evaluate. It looks like a KYO-SUKASHI TSUBA, depicting KARIGANE (have a look at the informations available here on NMB concerning this school), and the colour and blotches may lead to the impression, that it has been in a fire (as well as the NAKAGO of the WAKIZASHI). Hoan has mentioned this before. If that was the case, I am afraid there is not much value left, also considering the heavy corrosion in some spots. Nothing can be said in regard to the blade as there are no pictures. As you might have read here on the NMB, it is almost impossible to judge the quality (and even the market value!) of blades based on photos, the more when these are not in good polish.

Florian, he is a kind man, no doubt, but you cannot expect any NIHONTO related knowledge from him. If he had not his Japanese girl friend (or wife in the meantime?) he would be helpless. You have to make out for yourselves what you can buy. I would not say that if I did not know him personally.

David, it may be my old eyes but I count three MEKUGI ANA in the NAKAGO and also a number of them (three?) in the TSUKA. So one could guess that at some point of time the original handle was broken or lost and had to be replaced, presumably but another used one. At least one new MEKUGI ANA had to be drilled then for adaptation. I think there is no other great secret behind! Date is SHOWA 20, SHOGATSU, by the way.

Ford, I also enjoy your expert comments as eye-opener, and I am as well thankful for any opportunity to learn to distinguish between the quality levels. Being able to compare fine items which I probably will never be able to hold - that is so much different compared to my rookie times in the seventies! This is really a valuable improvement in the learning curve! Thanks, Ford!

Chris, in the mid seventies, they had Japanese film weeks in Frankfurt, Germany, and they showed classic SAMURAI films like 'Seven SAMURAI', YOJIMBO, TSUBAKI SANJURO, RASHOMON a.s.o. every other day. Among these was a film I liked a lot, and in the years since then, I tried in vain to see this film again. It was difficult as I did not remember the title, and unfortunately only a part of the contents. To make a long story short, it took me about 40 years to find that film again on YouTube (UGETSU MONOGATARI, 1953). So, with a little endurance, I am sure you will have your film one day!

Curran, do you have an explanation for the strangely shaped NAKAGO ANA seen in some items? Is it meant to fit a KATANA NAKAGO as well as one of a European rapier? Thank you!

Vern, first thing: get the cat out of the bed. Then take some close-up photos of the tang with the signature, avoiding reflections. If inside the house, try with light from the side, the signature is clear enough so you need no special tricks. Use daylight, if possible, but not bright sunshine. The pictures seem to show a really nice NAGINATA. Shape is o.k. but the damages of the tip might be a problem. To help you, well focused, sharp photos are needed.

Chris, I wish you the best of luck with your quest! Of course it is a bit selfish as I hope to see that film one day, too!

Zac, Japanese are very conventional people. Have you ever seen a SAYA decorated like this? The drawing is quite nice, I would love to see it on a KAKEMONO, but definitely not on a SAYA.

Zac, why don't you show us your SAYA and a sketch of what you want to add as embellishment? We would then be able to help and give advice. Paint isn't lacquer, and sometimes the wrong paint can ruin the underground. Please sign all posts with at least a first name as per the board rules.

Christian, this is basically the book I mentioned, but obviously for free.

Antti, a recommendation to read would be 'Steel Metallurgy for the Non-Metallurgist' by Prof. Paul Verhoeven (2007). It is available also in German language since last year. It is not an easy read as the title suggests, because it covers the subject in full detail and depth, and my personal feeling is that it is best understood when practical experience with steel is given. Otherwise it remains a quite dry and theoretical book. The difference to many other books on the subject of steel is that it uses latest research technology to better explain the facts. Concerning TEKKOTSU, I will send you my own research results and interpretation via PM.

Antii, TEKKOTSU and traces of folding are closely related. I have observed that TEKKOTSU can be quite irregularly distributed in the steel (showing mostly in the MIMI), while folding seams are more streched-out and often in one level. Both features can be easily confused, but even the finest crack in it will define it safely as a folding seam. Looking at the inside of the NAKAGO-ANA, evidence of layered construction can sometimes be seen quite clearly. This depends to an extent on the way the opening is cut.

Antii, a very nice TSUBA! All steels from all pre-industrial manufacture had to be folded and fire-welded to homogenize them. TEKKOTSU can be related to insufficient homogenizing so there remain larger lumps of iron in the steel. Industrial steel means steel made in a blast furnace which to my knowledge was not made in Japan before the end of EDO period. Nevertheless, Japanese smiths had imported NANBAN TETSU at their disposal as early as about 1600, so roughly at the beginning of the EDO period. I don't know if it was easily to be had by any smith at that time, and I don't know if TSUBASHI used it the same way as sword smiths. The latter sometimes signed with the additional remark 'NANBAN TETSU', but I don't remember having seen this on TSUBA. Features on the TSUBA directly related to layering are sometimes encountered as narrow linear TEKKOTSU (as on your TSUBA) or as small cracks or fissures, sometimes both in one place. Although still often repeated, TEKKOTSU does not form from wear.

Ford, I wonder how they could have made a TAKABORI decoration on an 'AMIDA ray' (is there a correct term for it?) underground unless they used iron ZOGAN technique on iron. What do you think?