bigjohnshea

I've bought from Florian before and he is a very reliable, trustworthy merchant. If you are considering this blade he will not dissappoint you. Cheers!

This is on hold pending payment. Donation to the board coming. Sometime soon. :-)

Got the impression from someone that the link to photos is not working. Here are the photos. Cheers!

This is my only price drop because I cannot accept less than this. I have plans for the money and it requires atleast this much. Now 7200$ Folks, look at the sword market... There are THozon tantos by famous smiths from the Nambokucho listed for 6000$. This is a katana by a master listed for 1200$ more than that. Someone should buy this before I have second thoughts about selling it for so little...

Thanks Marius! Good to see you again online.

Greg, Thank you for your comment. :-) In truth, this really is a beautiful sword with an impecable lineage, and the best possible provenance you could ask for in a mumei blade with attribution. THozon may not be as impresive as Juyo, but it's just as reliable for a student, and doesn't come with the bloated price tag these days. There was a time when THozon swords sold regularly in the five figures range, but if you look around these days you don't see alot of that action. Buying a THozon blade like this, at this excellent price, gives a student of Nihonto many benefits. 1) It's affordable by most people with a reasonable income. 2) It has appreciable beauty, and is easy to admire. Perhaps not as perfect as a Juyo sword, but more than enough beauty for someone who isn't trying to build a collection that will inflate their ego. 3) If, like me, you still consider yourself a student of Nihonto, then swords like this are invaluable resources. You get to study the work of a master, in hand, and know for certain what you are looking at because it has been papered twice and then given Sayagaki by the best mind in the business. In a world were attributions change from one shinsa to the next, having a sense of certainty about what you are studying is important. There is no doubt that this is what it is. I've owned dozens of Nihonto in the past, and generally do not hold onto them once I'm done studying them. I have one I'd like to keep, thus far, but others I'm happy to move along so I can study another. This is my situation here, and I've been at this for a good while now. Cheers!

Can trim the price a bit if people need it but I cannot accept offers much lower than what I advertised. Also payment plan might be possible if there is a fair deposit offered. :-) Cheers!

Trying to raise some needed funds and so I am offering this sword again on the bargain side of price. More photos: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/iqdqg3u8z703x9q/AAACRp3d-pwnXUCFNXoTWezha?dl=0 Tokubetsu Hozon Katana by the Shodai (1st generation) Sadatsuna. Nagasa of 25.65” Price 7700$ Mumei, o-suriage, in shirasaya w/ sword bag I will keep this listed for roughly 1wk then it will come down. This is a bargain price. Another similar to it was sold by Aoi for 1000$ more, and it had no bohi, no sayagaki, and no o-kissaki. When I acquired this sword it was priced much higher, but I can’t hold onto it anymore. I can offer a little more room to trim here on the price if someone needs it, but this is a very generous offer for someone determined to get a sword close to the lineage of Masamune. Iwami Sadatsuna worked in Sekishu region of Japan, which is the current day western portion of Shimane prefecture. Sadatsuna’s work is representative of the Soshu school. He was most active between 1346-1370, during the war torn period of the “Nambokucho jidai.” (1334-1392) Nambokucho means “South and North Courts Period” named as such due to the establishment at that time of Northern and Southern Imperial Courts, which ofcourse had conflicting ideologies. According to the history books Sadatsuna is the son of Shodai Sekishu Naotsuna, who is something of a legend due to his status as one of the Masamune Jutetsu, or Masamune's 10 Great Students. Swords by these 10 masters are some of the most revered and valuable works that a collector can acquire. Masamune himself is widely regarded as Japan's greatest swordsmith, and every one of his blades is considered a National Treasure. While Naotsuna's relation to Masamune is thought to be more of an informal mentorship than that of a true apprentice, he still excelled as a student nearly unrivaled in skill. Both Naotsuna and Sadatsuna show a clear relation to the work of Masamune, and Sadatsuna has numerous Juyo rated swords as well, which is a testament to his skill, and to the tutelage from his father. Like this one, the majority of Sadatsuna's swords are o-suriage (shortened, from the handle up) due to changes in preference for sword length over the periods of Japanese history. Additionally, the shirasaya (resting sheath) bares a sayagaki (calligraphy appraisal) by Tanobe Machihiro, which also attributes the blade to Shodai Sadatsuna. Machihiro is a widely published author on the topic of Nihonto. He served for a time as the curator of The Japanese Sword Museum in Tokyo, as well as the Senior Managing Director of the NBTHK. His books form some of the foundational works of Japanese sword study, and for this reason he is commonly referred to as Tanobe Sensei. A sayagaki by him is a cherished addition to any blade. Details: This sword is in the same great condition as it was when I received it and started studying it. There are some comments in the photos concerning imperfections, but obviously nothing preventing a THozon paper. I would prefer payment via bank transfer, and will cover shipping within the USA. International shipping will be extra. If you want to pay via Paypal that would be fine but I will ask you cover the fees. Thanks for looking! Please emial me at bigjohnshea@gmail.com with interest, or PM me here.

PM on #9

Thanks everyone for your comments. In response to Peter's question, it is unlikely I will try to sell this sword, but someday it will pass on to another, hopefully by inheritence many years from now. It seems like a smart move to try for better papers so when that happens the value has gone up somewhat. If push comes to shove, and I HAVE to sell it, the same concept applies. Cheers.

Thanks for your advice Paul. :-) Cheers.

Hello everyone, Hope you have all been well since I last visited. I've been moving around blades in my collection and have been fortunate to acquire this one. https://www.dropbox.com/sh/brbnsh7enreoc1s/AAB0m-unjnLQhQ6W_6L-RYMqa?dl=0 Almost certainly a keeper for me unless something one generation older, but still financially attainable comes up. Which is unlikely for me... I've never submitted for Juyo shinsa, and am wondering if anyone can spot a specific reason why this blade would definitely fail Juyo shinsa? I'm in no rush to spend the money on it, but if I'm going to keep this in the long run then submitting for Juyo in the future might be an option. In my mind, the most outstanding issue in the blade is the nagasa. I have seen a Juyo Shodai Sadatsuna on another site. It is in excess of 28". As far as I know there is no minimal length on Juyo submissions and particularly for a smith whose works are nearly all o-suriage, I'm not sure if the nagasa would really keep it from passing Juyo. The two small umegane are a minor flaw, but perhpas not big enough to prevent passing Juyo. I know things like this are tolerated better in blades this age, so I'm not overly concerned for it but perhaps the judges are more scrutinous than I expect. The photos and information are courtesy of the merchant. It will be obvious which one if you take a look. Thanks everyone for your advice. If people would prefer to voice their opinions via PM, please do. Hope the holidays are treating you all well. Cheers.

Here's a few images of it. The hamon does not completely vanish, but the last polish likely took away its full character at this one spot near the hamachi.

Am I the only one who thinks it's silly to base a rating of TH or Juyo on whether or not a mei is present? Just my opinion, but it seems like the quality of the work and the state of the blade's condition are what matters most. History will have its way with swords just like everything else. That doesn't meant the quality isn't there.

Ofcourse not. You clearly have expressed an interest in selling things for more than they are worth, so why would you intercede other than to try and sell the same buyer something else of greater price than it's worth. I'd like to add, I'm not trying to smear you as a person Alex, just trying to get people to see that there really is no place in the collecting of valuable things like swords for making an undue profit.

Alex, The humerous thing is you're right, it is likely not selling because it has no papers. But that does not mean it is overpriced. Find another like it for less, with or without papers. You on the other hand, selling for 10,000$ a hypothetical sword you paid 8000$ for, know that it is overpriced. You state you are entitled to try and make a profit. Are you really? What have you done to earn that profit other than buy a sword for one price and sell it for another price? That is nothing, and the only reason why someone can sell an 8000$ sword for 10,000$ is because the buyer doesn't know what you paid for it. Mind you, this is not the same thing as buying stock for 1$ and selling it for 10$ when the value changes. The value of your 8000$ sword does not change just because you bought it.

And what if they're selling a sword you can get on ebay for 700$ for 2700$ here? Sure it's not 10,000$ but 2700$ with the right types of claims is just low enough a price to make someone think they are getting something worth 2700$ when in reality they are just being screwed, and the board is facilitating it. To answer your first question, when you sell an 8000$ sword for 10,000$ chances are it's still only worth 8000$ when they try to sell it a year later. YOU know you're asking too much, and the buyer you duped will know when they have to resell it.

With regard to commenting on price or quality, people should have to support their comments with a justification. In the case of the sword I was commenting on above, a simple comment such as "I can find three swords online, from reputable sellers, that are similar to yours but are listed at 30% of your asking price. Why are you asking so much for your sword?" Instead I had to attack the sellers comments concerning the sword, and in the end most of my comments got deleted, but the sword did not sell here. Maybe elsewhere, but not here. Yesterday I posted a tanto for sale here. Years ago a similar but better quality tanto sold for $4000. My cost for my tanto up to this point was $3400, but I listed it at $2500 because when you consider what it is actually worth, it does not justify what it has cost me. That is my problem, not the buyers problem. I should not expect the buyer to compensate me for my costs on this blade. I found a buyer because the price was fair to begin with, and I worked with them on price a bit more. I lost overall, but in the end the buyer didn't really win or lose. They got what they paid for, a sword worth about what they paid for it, nothing more, nothing less. That is what people should get when they spend the kind of money these swords are worth. A square deal.

I have given negative comments before on one sword that was up for sale here a number of months ago, but the only reason I did it was to prevent someone new to collecting from potentially wasting thousands of dollars on a drastically overpriced sword. I personally feel like there is only so much threshold for profit that a seller can expect before it becomes a rip off to the buyer. As critical as some people are about swords, I see no reason at all to not be critical of what people post for sale, and for how much; particularly when a seller is either purposefully or mistakenly listing something at much too high a price. If you want my honest opinion about why Nihonto are barely selling, or selling slowly, it's because there are so many of them commanding prices that are unrealistic to the average collector. The average middle class income is $52,000. Even spending $2000 of that on a collectible item like a sword is a stretch, let alone the cost of a THozon blade, for example. People cannot afford to get ripped off, and given the number of swords available, it should never happen. If we allow NMB's For Sale section to be the kind if place where that can happen, then this place becomes suspect as a whole. Personally, I think that forbidding comment about price or quality in the sale section is a mistake for this reason. Hope you are all well. Cheers,

Still available. Going to shinsa soon, just been busy with school. Really do want to sell though so please contact John Kurata with offers if interested. Thanks for looking everyone. Cheers!

Bumping this one last time. I'm planning to withdrawl this from sale in a few weeks and submit it for NBTHK shinsa. Not convinced it will sell for fair price without papers, and I think the quality is good enough it could go TH. Will atleast get Hozon, so worth submitting in my eyes. Will be off the market for months at that point, and likely up at the original price after papered. So if someone is interested at this price, it may be your last chance. Hope everyone is well. :-) Cheers,

Yes apparently there will be a shinsa as well at the Florida show in February. This was annouced recently.

No, sorry, it is San Francisco, not Florida. My mistake.

Jesse, Sorry if I was unclear. I won't be there myself but John Kurata who I have consigned this too will be there, and will be bringing it along with another blade of mine he has on his site. Enjoy the show. Wish I could attend but I have alot going on with Medical School so I can't make it. Cheers,

Jesse, Apologies for the delay responding. Been busy with board exams for school. It is still available, and will be at the upcoming sword show. I think that show is in Florida? Will let you know for sure come September. Thanks for your interest. It's a beauty for sure. :-) Cheers, John