SteveM

入営（營）- Joining the army

The imperial dating system is actually pretty common for swords made during the war years. But the other inscription is a mystery. https://Japan-forward.com/how-to-read-date-inscriptions-on-Japanese-swords/

Hopefully this helps. 満鉄鍛造之 昭和癸未春

I'm at a loss as to what it is. If I had a gun to my head I'd say its a variant of 九 (mindful of a discussion that Morita-san and Moriyama-san had some time ago about the conventions of calligraphy, and that if the same kanji appears twice in a phrase, that kanji should be written two different ways). But when I think of the meaning (99 varieties?) it doesn't make much sense, unless its a way of saying "many". If I search for that phrase I get nothing. If I search for "9 varieties" I get a bunch of hits related to mahjong, which seems to be a dead end as well. If not 九, my next thought was 仇 but that is even more of a dead end.

And in regards to your question as to whether this was owned by a samurai - unfortunately we have no way of knowing. Swords of katana length were restricted to samurai, but it is a rule that seems to have had a lot of lax oversight. In addition, travelers were allowed knives and short swords for protection. Some merchants were granted the right to own swords if they contributed towards certain civic projects. Don't worry about samurai relics... Japan is full of objects in much better condition than this one. In Japanese antiques parlance, this is what they would call "garakuta" (junk). As an art object and an antiquity, this piece is damaged beyond redemption. Bear in mind the metal fittings may not have been excellent quality to begin with. Hence the harsh valuation. It might be hard to believe that the Japanese antiques world would not attach much value to a two or three-hundred year old item like this, but this is the reality. Follow the advice of the gents above - they know what they are talking about. https://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q1424846364 https://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q1061046210

Yes! That's it. 草木花囗九種為　柏氏 A variant of 花 is used. https://glyphwiki.org/wiki/twedu-a03439-012 Still unsure of the one middle kanji, but I think it only has interest for us kanji fanatics. Unless that mystery kanji drastically alters the meaning, 九種 here refers to "nine varieties". So the meaning is indeed something like "Design of nine various plants, flowers, trees for Mr. Kashiwa", as Matt says.

Koki 2602 (spring) 皇記二千六百二年　春

Nice - it sure is an enigma. Hopefully Morita-san will give us a hand.

Possible to get a picture of the date? And, maybe this isn't a mei at all, but an inscription with some other meaning. I like your guess of Ippo... it is what got me thinking that this might not be a mei.

一為 (Looks closest to me, but I don't think there is a Seki smith of this name) 一前 (Seki smith, but somehow I don't think this is the one) 一義 一寿 All of the above feel vaguely plausible, but none of them seem to hit the mark completely. The second kanji on the tang is grass-script calligraphy, and therefore it is a very reduced shorthand cursive form of the original kanji - alas I'm not very adept at deciphering grass-script.

Left side is 水府住玉川義久（花押）Tamagawa Yoshihisa of the Mito-han Right side is 草木柏氏囗囗九種為 Kusagi Kashiwa shi ~ ~ kyushū no tame The right side would be a dedication, presumably to the person who ordered the tsuba, but I'm not sure of the reading of the name. Kusagi (or Kusaki) and then Kashiwa, followed by 氏 which typically is used as a neutral honorific. Kusagi and Kashiwa are both viable last names, so their combination here stumps me. The following two kanji are a mystery. The final kanji, 為, is used to indicate a dedication (it basically means "for").

Looks like some random scratching on the tang - it isn't a mei.

Wow! I remember this from years ago. It was, and still is, too daunting a translation task for me, so I will enjoy studying the old-fashioned Japanese alongside the modern version, and the English translation. This was a huge task for the translator. Many thanks for posting this. And congratulations to Mieko Grey for completing this. http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/4119-oi-no-nezame/

I think the one on the right is 模伊豫源朝臣義総囗囗 Mo Iyo Minamoto Ason Yoshifusa ?? But I couldn't find any match for this, or for the one on the left (which, I agree, is Heianjō Fusamichi).

Sorry, I meant the Wakayama reference guide for metalworkers. It lists four artists who used the art name Kiryūsai. I think you are right about Hotei. My guess is that this is Hotei pointing to the moon. (指月布袋図) https://buddhismnow.com/2018/06/29/who-is-the-laughing-buddha/hotei-dp700713/

起竜斎　Kiryūsai But which Kiryūsai it is, I cannot tell you. There were at least 4, according to Wakayama.

濃州住人浅井敏秀作(之？） Nōshū jūnin Asai Toshihide saku (kore?) Hard to see the final kanji.

I thought it was bamboo grass and hollyhock (笹と葵), and that particular combination had some significance, but nothing is leaping out at me. Or bamboo grass and ivy?

Nowadays I don't think its uncommon to see war blades, especially those in good condition, being kept in shirasaya. The Showa stamp is really a good indicator of what kind of blade it is. Occam's razor being what it is, I'd say you have an arsenal blade.

Hello 濃洲関住岡田兼義作之 Noshū Seki-jū Okada Kaneyoshi saku kore Wartime blade (note the Showa stamp above the name). Smith's name is "Okada Kaneyoshi". You can find more info if you do a search.

Date is 昭和十四年 (Shōwa 14), so 1939.

Yes I agree with John, 俊清作 (Toshikiyo saku) for the smith. On the kozuka it looks like 主水正 (Mondo-no-shō), a name who has shown up on another recent thread. This one is sure to be a fake signature. Edit: I can't find any Toshikiyo in a cursory online search, and the kanji on the sword looks slightly different from 俊. The kanji on sword has 公 on the top of the right part instead of ム, so it may well be something else.

英則 (Hidenori) perhaps?

贈 射撃優等者 Presented for excellence in marksmanship

Maybe that first part is 總金具　(meaning all fittings made of brass)?