1tallsword

this tsuba came from a koshirae set i recently bought. I am having a difficult time figuring the mei out, any guesses?? i know this is a long shot but you folks are good :D any info would help, thank you in advance for your time and efforts, Jeremy

thank you very much for your kindness and help, learned a couple things today about WW2 blades cheers,Jeremy

thank you very much Mark and Hoanh for your time and knowledge. when I look at different swords from Yoshimune there general consensus is they are good quality swords,with that said I must admit i am just learning about the WW2 swordsmiths.. were there different Yoshimune during the war producing swords?? I am trying to get an idea if this is a higher quality swordsmith, woth a polish?? ect.. thank you again,Jeremy

here are more

hello folks. I must admit in not too good with the ww2 swords.. with that said I had the help of a fellow member translate the mei as yoshimune.. I would like to confirm this if possible. also what quality of sword maker was he? here are some pics, sword needs a little tlc, not in the best polish but could be worse. thank you in advance for your comments,Jeremy

I would have to agree with Grey. also might i add in my opinion the nakago looks somewhat suspicious to me, age looks artificial. the kissaki is something to be left desired.... i would spend a cent on restoration... Jeremy.

i would have to second all those motions and suggest picking up a book and start reading. ive been reading and looking for 1 year now and still know nothing :lol: but trying...

I could be way off here which wouldnt be a suprise :D but I see the second as YASU could be tameyasu .

sorry i was also typing on another... got the two mixed up, yes i stand corrected its hozon, but by the info provided and several known tokubetsu hozon blades known by Sakakura seki im sure there is room for improvement. as to the price?? someone else will have to tune in .. cheers, Jeremy

thank you john,

seen this sword and not too good with the ww2 era mei , if anyone would be so kind as to shed some light on this I would be much obliged thank you, Jeremy.

at the length it is I would have to say its a wakizashi, being over 1 shaku in all... might I add a very good school and tokubetsu hozon makes it interesting. the tsuba I like and is of good quality.

leave it the way it is and enjoy it. there are enough restored items out there. appreciate it for what it is and thats a good piece of history, I like it and its patina, if you like it than that's all that matters. at the end of the day its yours and if you like it good, no one else has to like it and it don't matter what they say cause its not theres, the only person that needs to like it is you!

alright to put this to rest I purchased it from a gentleman that had it for a very long time, guaranteed its authenticity or money back and has always been honest with me.he guaranteed a letter with it, he has other swords and kept all papers in drawer. now as he looks through papers he cant locate this one..LOL I have several other papers and sword from this source that are good, now he is old and not as sprey as he once was and thinks it was an older paper dated 1971 now. not 2001 as that one he had in mind was to another sword. non the less even if he does find the paper its old and I would still be sending it back in for a new one. so what I will do is submit this sword and I guess we will find out for sure. so there you have it, I will keep you all posted on the results, non the less he said if it did not pass he will refund my money so how can I go wrong :D on another note happy I woke the forum up a little thank you to everyone that commented good or bad, I have big shoulders and can take it Jeremy

thank you to all and respectfully good day. guess I opened a can of worms here with this one, at the least it woke everyone up anyhow I was fully aware of the cert. but just wanted to know if anyone had seen many here as they were not common to see here, also my second question was just a general opinion of value, sure I have my research on sales and values but was just being curious encase someone mentioned one selling that I was not aware of. once again thank you to all and I appreciate your time, Jeremy

well matt just posted a link proving all what Jacques D. mention to be inaccurate. when comparing the two mei I see a striking resemblance! thank you to all for your info, Jeremy

it has been papered by nbthk and dated 2001, if you research his latter mei dated 1681 and before his sudden death 1682 you will find it to be correct. the question was never if it was authentic...lol I just simply asked about the paper and to make good conversation maybe opinions as to value. why are so many members so eager to throw out the word gimei, I know of many that wont even post on this sight anymore due to this. out of all my swords I have only 3 are not lettered, all are either nthk or nbthk. thanks fellas for your input on the mei but your all wrong, I to am leaning towards not posting pics for enjoyment anymore as the gimei word seems to have been embedded in all your vocabulary :D its a shame because pics are needed to share knowledge and to futhure the learning. However with that said when an item is in no question 100% fake, recent made or Chinese then it is important to mention it is gimei. however on here it seems and appears and not only feel this way that word is abused. I have posted pics just to see of lettered swords mei looked good and more than once everyone was so eager to scream gimei. one friend I know warned me of this when I first joined and he too tested with pics and is no longer even posting pics of his collection.just answering questions ect. I too will no longer post any pics of my great swords and will only ask questions and answer questions. good day, Jeremy

here are some clear pictures of letter :D

couple more pics

this is my recent addition folks. this has come with letter dated from my translation nov.20 1970,issued by the school board of miyazaki prefecture (signet) mei reads inoue shinkai and dated feb. 1681. letter mentions how some of his swords are designated as important cultural properties of Japan. sorry for the crumby pics, the flash washes out a lot of patina and age on nakago. for our discussion... question number one how many of these letters have you seen? also how many swords by this maker are known to be important cultural properties and such? also anyone dare hazard a guess to aprox value :D

hey Matt, can you post a picture of the mei, blade and nakago please. This will help as there were several generations of smithd by that name, cheers, Jeremy

thank you chris, yes i need a better camera the hamon is difficult to make out in these pics and almost apears suguha hotsure but a in hand inspection and good light shows it is not. cheers, jeremy

thank you chris.

thanks chris. it has a light sanbonsugi hamon and also nioi .... 4th or 5th kanemoto style???? I know its near impossible to judge without blade in hand and looking at not so good pics.LOL but why you say gimei? ive found several lettered examples there mei identical to this mei.

thank you john and gerant. there are no signes of any other mekugi ana, ur eyes must be playing tricks. the length from machi to kissaki is 20 inches. visable but near gone are yasurime , very faint.