Ken-Hawaii

Harry, do you see any origami (papers)? If those blades wouldn't pass even Hozon, it would make them unmarketable at current prices.

Museums aren't known for their "loving care" of Nihonto, & I can't recall seeing a museum exhibition in the U.S. that impressed me.

Ciro, you need to understand how a blade is evaluated, which starts with the sugata (overall shape). Your first image should show the entire bare blade, not tiny bits & pieces, & an off-axis nakago.

Are you asking about your katana's Shinto sugata, Johan, or how it evolved?

Seth, a good rule of thumb is to totally ignore the mai, if any. The blade will identify itself through its other characteristics. Markus Sesko, our most-prolific member, has posted a university-level series of articles, https://markussesko.com/kantei/, which can be used to teach yourself the correct way to evaluate (kantei) Nihonto. Welcome, & enjoy the journey.

Welcome aboard, Ken. You can learn a lot by asking questions, & we welcome them.

I had to search by your full name on Amazon, Yurie, but I found your book, bought it, & am reading it on my Kindle. Looks great, although I want to change the font size. Congratulations! I'll buy the e-book when it's available, too.

Juan, letting this drag out with the dealer doesn't help your case. I would send him a certified letter, that requires a signature, that specifically addresses what you want to happen. Then follow up, every day, if needed.

That nioiguchi has teeth! Quite a blade.

Lulu.com probably cr eates PDFs based on orders, so it's not surprising that not everything is available at once. I do my best to only order electronic files, these days, so I suggest being patient, as it's unlikely any of his books will be "out of print."

You may be getting your wires crossed. Markus publishes both "Swordsmiths of Japan" & "Index of Japanese Swordsmiths" as PDF files.

Jon, I know you've already pulled the trigger, but are you aware that Shinto blades, & later, have nothing to do with actual warfare? Doesn't matter to some, but other collectors prefer to know that their blade has (likely) been used in battle.

Seems like a short nakago for a katana. Handachi, perhaps? Probably Muromachi, in any case. Decent first purchase, Larry, but it would be more impressive if you knew enough about your blade to describe it. Grab http://www.militaria.co.za/articles/Kantei_Sheet.pdf & start figuring out exactly what you have.

I have all of Markus' books loaded onto my Samsung Android tablet in PDF format. It's like carrying an entire library! I reference them so often, that I can't figure out which would be "the book." Sorry, Jason, but any of Sesko's books will be a worthy investment in your knowledgebase.