Alex A

Hi Mark S, I noticed yesterday that the example you put on was signed tachi mei. Now then, that was typical (but always an exception to the rule) of Tadakuni line katana. From what i understand, wakizashi where signed katana mei, but then again, maybe exceptions out there, not sure. Anyway, the mei on your example is shoddy to say the least, especially "wara" . An attempt at "Harima no kami", the son of Shodai Tadakuni or possibly the Shodai in his later years (so ive read, gets confusing). The example in Jims link is that of the Shodai. 20 watchers, someone looking for a bargain Josaku smith maybe, wishful thinking.

Newbies are often asking how to spot fakes, maybe there should be a compilation of mugshots, a prize at the end of the year for best and worst fake :lol:

No expert, but looks gimei to me.

Maybe time should be narrowed down a little as regarding mumei swords, rather than categorize, each sword weighed up individually.

Cheers Chris, as you say, Nobukuni school would have made a clearer choice.

Here is a nice example of what i have been looking at. http://www.nihonto.ca/naotsuna/

Hi Paul, i should have been more specific with that statement, im particularly interested in mumei/ubu pieces from the Nanbokucho period. Would this then rule out merchants? This requires further reading on my part, not sure, apart from samurai, who actually carried tanto/wakizashi at that time...

Mark, the price of your sword as just doubled This could be another topic, but does have something to do with what is being written about blades made for nobles/posh samurai. Im assuming smiths of old did not do Horimono free of charge, so, horimono would suggest the blade was made for someone up the ladder, would it not?

Interesting little read Mariusz. Seems Era may play an important role.

I suppose each blade has to be looked at individually, the school, the time, the quality, ubu or not and then one can make up their own mind, speculate :lol: Given the number of swords past down through generations, seems a pity information was lost along the way. Ps Km, there must have been many genuine far fetched reasons that some swords where left unsigned, yours isnt one of them

Moving on, another thought circling my noggin regarding mumei pieces, particularly Tanto/wakizashi from the Nanbokucho period. Ive been looking at work from rated schools. Ive seen mumei, UBU, tanto/wakizashi with original elaborate carved Horimono and some not so elaborate, typical Suken, Bonji and Ken. Now then, the fact that these mumei/ubu blades have these horimono tells me the work was good. Why would a smith go to the hassle of carving horomono if the blade was inferior? So, there had to be good reason these blades in particular where not signed. Ive read the VIP/Shrine theory. Maybe in these cases, thats correct.

Never been able to fathom out how the Lanes get to some of those prices

Hi Doug, your likely to come across low end Late Edo/Meiji Sukashi tsuba that where cut from "stock" plate, i owned an example a while ago. Featureless flat steel with neat crisp edges. The one i owned had been mounted, so, someone must have considered it adequate at some point

Sorry mods, just noticed another thread on this subject below!, darn, even threads on the subject can be invisible, please feel free to delete this thread.

I dont know much about these weapons, is it a bit late for this kind of weapon?, i would have linked them to an earlier period. A recent thread with a photo raised my interest a little.

First one ive seen for sale. http://www.aoijapan.com/kusarigama-nany ... kichijitsu

Looks familiar. Tsuba page http://www.thelanesarmoury.co.uk/shop.php

Your right Grey, i was thinking the wood around the habaki had swelled due to moisture.

I would try placing the sword in an air tight bag for a day with half a dozen decent sized silica gel desiccant sachets.

Lol, Trent, you must have too much money, you remind me of this guy :D

The seller didnt need any help, i certainly dont think there naive on the subject, or Ebay, by the look of things.

US bidders only . I cant help thinking that the seller should have gone global, judging by the interest level. :lol:

It is is interesting to view blades under different light sources, Steve, i got me one of those LED,s too. Dan, it is surprising what a difference a coloured tint makes to a photo. Bottom left reminds me of an old "black and white" photo, top right blue adds depth. Ken, now theres a light source, wouldnt have thought of that one, maybe one of the reasons smiths started talking art

I was wondering if viewing swords in natural sunlight was common amongst collectors?, i find that it adds a certain clarity that you do not get with imitation lighting, kind of brings the sword to life. Ive spent an hour or two this afternoon trying to improve my photography skills (to no avail), the first picture is in imitation light, the rest are in sunlight. I was hoping to capture the clarity that sunlight brings, but it is difficult to capture in a picture what the good old eye sees.

£6.92 Amazon, acceptable price, although i often get a little concerned when it mentions "corrosion inhibitors". Maybe i worry too much. http://www.amazon.co.uk/BreakFree-CLP-4 ... B0002IKDQ6