Jean

Guido wrote "That's what people always call me when I'm singing karaoke ... :rofl:" So true Guido, I have still that video taken during a yakatabune event 5 years ago. If you want, I can always post it so that members can judge...

Chris, When you are an expert, you can visualize everything as well in global as in particular: the nioiguchi, the nie, the nioi, the hataraki and the way it forms the hamon

In fact Arnold, I have found much more constitency in the hamon than in the hada. For instance, in my Naoe Shizu,, I have running itame (masame) just above the hamon which is a Naoe Shizu kantei point. Michael's one does not have. Mine have utsuri too. It is very difficult to make a kantei with a very short portion of the blade. An overall picture of the blade would have helped a lot of people, if you look at the overall picture of my Naoe Shizu, the kantei is much more easier and I am sure that if Michael provides one of his blade we will see the characteristics of a Naoe Shizu.

Paul wrote: "The point I am trying to get to is that there is considerable variation in hada within schools" That the most important thing we have to keep in mind after reading this topic. I express already that thought more than a year ago when mentioning that I have studied 10 ko bizen swords side by side and that the only things which did not vary was the hamon, the hada could differed among these blades. Have a look at my Naoe Shizu hada (rather hadatatsu): http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/17414-achieved-collection-gokaden/page-1

Kanji worn out: Bichu ju Fusa/Hiro? Naga

Michael, FWIW, Aoi rates the sword, Fujshiro rates the smith. Big difference

NBTHK subscription fee in Europe is 220€, expensive.

Look also at the hamachi, the hamon in the juyo zufu runs through the hamachi, in AA oshigata and pictures, the hamon stops just at the hamachi as if it was ubu. The nioi guchi is perfectly visible and not corresponding to the juyo zufu. The Mizukage does not appear on the juyo zufu oshigata...

I have created this new post for members in order for them to exercise their eyes . Just be weary and train your eyes. This blade is Ok but should the new owner decide to have it polished again based on AA oshigata .... Josh, The answer is money. In 2014, the blade was a Juyo Aoe Kanetsugu.

Thanks Michael to have translated my thought/post The one retempered was posted on Aoi Art website one or two years ago. When the boshi and the ha machi in AA pictures and in AA oshigata are totally different from the juyo zufu, there is only one conclusion. Concerning the picture, Michael, what you see is the keisho polish and not the real one. The boshi as shown in AA oshigata is the boshi of a late Kamakura or Nambokucho blade and not of an Heian blade ..

Chris, The right word is SAYAGAKI and not SAGAYAKI

Dyslexia, Pete

Arnold, 2 swords The first one posts today, the real boshi is reflected in Shinsa oshigata and not in AA's one Second one posted at least one year ago (ko Aoe if I remember well). The blade had been retempered beween the juyo shinsa and the time it is posted on the web site, boshi was larger and as the original blade was almost ubu, the saiha made it ubu... very tricky

This morning on Aoi Art. https://www.aoijapan.com/katana-mumeiunsigned-attributed-to-kobizen-yoshikane-nbthk-28th-juyo-token Just to draw your attention on the Shinsa oshigata and Aoi Art's one. The boshi is not the same at all. The real one is very close to the edge. Always be weary about AA oshigata. There was a Juyo sword for sale 1 or 2 years ago on AA website. AA oshigata was totally different from the juyo one, but close to the pictured blade. One could say, there was a mix of 2 different blades. No, it was the same blade. There was only one conclusion. The blade had been retempered between juyo shinsa and its display on AA website. Always compare oshigata when available...

That's in fact is a question of taste as it has been said. I have seen some vey good kinko tsuba (main line goto or other schools) that I find lovely. It is like comparing bananas to pears. Same object, one made by a smith, the other by jeweller.

Jeremiah, You will have some answers in studying Tokubesu Juyo blades or Kokuho/juyo bunkazai/bijutsuhin. Some of them are pretty close from their shape when coming out from the forge. "Generally" speaking, the higher the classification the closer from their initial state. For the rest, it is pure speculation, above all for Koto blades. You will never know for a given blade how many polishes it has undergone and which kind of polishes (thorough or light). Not two blades are alike and not two blades have the same history. In French, we call this "sex angel discussion"

It is not so diffcult to find a method to learn Nihonto. You have great books which explain it from the start. Provinces, schools, smiths with kantei points for each school/smiths. Then after it is a question of study in hand The Connoisseur's book of Japanese swords Or this website http://www.sho-shin.com I have been unable to find the equivalent for tsuba. Ihabe several books on tsuba. None are satisfying. So I look at tsuba, that's all. Where can I find a book starting from scratch, telling the province/the schools/the tsubako and its kantei point. How can I say, it's a shoami rather than an higo one if they have the same design, what are the kantei ponts? Why is it an Owar for suba when same motive can be found in other schools. I have a few tsuba, a score, all good or fair (to my eyes)

Shinsa for blades and tosogu are separated if I remember well. Decision belongs to shinsa and being experts they don't need any advisor

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Chris, Congratulation for purchasing this wonderful blade. Very good quality.

In fact, Nihonto is like Religion. In terms of quality/history, the best of the best is god (I remember a Hosokawa tokuju blade. It was brand new, no more than 3 polishes, as if released from the forge yesterday but not God), then it comes to his disciples (first lineage, top blades), saijo saku smiths with blades at an inch of god's blade, then second lineage, almost as good as the first lineage but lacking something, jo-jo saku smiths, then jo saku smiths and so on. Thus you could have for a classification according quality : Masamune, then Norishige, and then Tametsugu, just a question of quality or "lack" of quality. That's why it is interesting to see as many fantastic blades as possible. It is the only way to understand quality and shades of quality, it is the rating system: Kokuho, juyo Bunkazaï... or Tokuju, juyo, TH... See as many top blades when going to a Nihonto show, learn to detect quality and what makes quality in blades.

The sword has disappeared from the site ..

One has to do is homework. To think only 5 seconds that this blade could be tokuju is ....let's say mildly unbelievable and that it could be priced at 3,2 M¥, well some still believe in Santa Claus... You have two kinds of swords which can reach Juyo and above. The first one deals with swords which have a very important historical background almost independently from their (health) condition, but now nobody can be sure of anything, juyo shinsa is unpredictable. The second one (look at juyo shinsa criteria) deals of good smiths and of quality blades. This blade is undoubtedly a good one but very far from being a top one, as I say I have seen a lot of better juyo by this smith and I was a bit surprised it was Juyo. Compare it to the Kanenaga sword that has been discussed and which is only TH... https://www.aoijapan.com/img/sword/2017/17046-3.jpg Now the school, Unrui school is an hybrid school. A mix of Yamashiro/Bizen, all the more difficult to reach Tokuju, it will have to be signed/ubu like these ones. Some have reached high levels as Juyo bunkazai or Kokuho (all ubu and signed) http://www.sho-shin.com/unji.htm http://www.sho-shin.com/unjo.htm Lesson one: focuss on quality then decide what kind of papers it could have and never take for granted what is written on dealers' site

Joe, Very good. To be excellent, the measurements must be equally written in the metric system...

AOI Art comment just says that this blade is upto NBTHK juyo quality standards. This blade is not Tokuju. It is far from Tokuju level quality. I have seen better Juyo blades from this smith