SteveM

That would work. Some people post to Imgur and post a link here.

「囗囗刻」 seems like a good start; a signature telling us who engraved the item. Somebody carved this. 保 feels very close, and it works as a part of a name...so far so good. The first one doesn't fit the sōsho version of 歌, so it should be something else, but I can't figure it out. If it were a sword I would cycle through the common kanji found in swordsmith names (Kane, Yoshi, Masa, etc..) to see if it looks like any of those, which, unfortunately, it doesn't. Sorry I couldn't offer anything substantial.

That's what it looks like to me, too. Toshinaga 歳長

Age is late 1930s to 1945. Maker...let's wait to be sure who the maker is before we dive into the details (but you should be able to find some info in English on the internet regarding Hattori Masahiro). We can be fairly sure of the age because of the distinct chippy style of marking the tang. No need for chalk as the name looks to be inscribed well/deep enough. Also, there may be a date inscribed on the opposite side.

Need a better shot of the nakago to properly read it, but my guess is 濃州関住服部正廣作 (Nōshū Seki jū Hattori Masahiro saku). That sword in those fittings should be worth north of $2000.

I don't recognize that word/words. Nothing comes up in a search, which leads me to think there is a misspelling in the words (or it is so obscure, no other person on the internet has ever made reference to it - which seems unlikely, but it could be possible). When I do a search on that phrase, the closest thing I get is 先手使番指物. Alas, there is no description for exactly what that is. I assume it is merely an identifying banner worn by someone on the very front lines of battle.

Yes, I was going to mention that too. It looks a lot like Sukeie, but I couldn't find any relevant reference either. So, with slight reservation, I'm leaning toward Sukemune.

This guy (or someone after him). "Suke" on this sword is 助. https://nihontoclub.com/smiths/SUK279

Mei says 備州長船助宗 Bishū Osafune Sukemune Bishū is another name for Bizen province (modern day Okayama, basically). Osafune is a town name. The town still exists. Sukemune is the name of the smith.

I think it is a typo in the Nihontoclub database. 丹波 can be read either as Tamba or Niwa depending on the context. It seems in this case it should be read Niwa.

Yes, as I mentionted in my first post I think it is possible there was some intention on the part of the smith to use "Ichi" in his name to further drive home the point that he was working in the style of Ichimonji. Bear in mind that Ichi (一) is a very common character to use in boy's names. It is usually applied to the first-born son's name (the baseball player Ichirō Suzuki, for example, or the musician Ryuichi Sakamoto). So on the one hand you shouldn't read too much into it. It could be just a name. But yes, it could be the smith trying to further remind everyone that the sword emulates an Ichimonji sword. At the end of the day, the sword itself is the important thing, rather than the name on the tang. And it looks like your sword is a fine example of a sword from this time and this lineage, so it looks like you did well with your impulse purchase.

Here is the reference that shows his birth name. https://www.samuraishokai.jp/sword/15117.html Neither of the swords I linked to have a date on them, so they may be contemporary with your sword. The paper for your sword says yours was made in the Shōō era (1652-1655). The use of the kiku mon was awarded to your smith after this time.

當＝当　It means "to hit" (as in, to hit a target), or to win something (election, lottery). The kanji on the left, and the one that is on your sword, is the original version. The kanji on the right is the simplified version that is in use in Japan today. There is no difference in meaning or pronunciation. Just two ways of drawing the same kanji. By itself it is pronounced ataru/atari. (If you are "of a certain age" you remember the video game company Atari. It was said that they took their name from this Japanese word meaning to win/hit). However, when this character is used as part of a compound word, it is pronounced tō. On your sword this character is combined with 一 (ichi) to form a sort of compound word tōichi. Actually it is a name rather than a word, but anyway the pronunciation of the two together (當一) is tōichi. There isn't a great amount of detail on Tōichi/Yasuhiro. None that is readily available to me, anyway. As you may know, swordsmiths and other artisans, scholars, politicians, in feudal Japan often went through many name changes in their lives. They may take on two or three or more different names as they proceed through their career. My guess is that Tōichi was a name he adopted early in his career, and then he dropped it as he began to be recognized (or maybe after the death of Yasuhiro 1st). His name at birth was Toda (or Tomita) Gorōzaemon. The use of the kiku-mon was something only allowed only under license/permission from the central government. It's use was a privilege that had to be awarded. The fact that it doesn't appear on your sword, plus the use of Tōichi in the name, makes me think your sword was made early in his career. Tō is indeed a homonym for sword (tō), but this is just a coincidence. Japanese is full of homonyms.

Hello JT, the sword was good enough for the gentlemen of the NTHK to deem it genuine, so I think you can take some comfort from that. If there were any obviously problematic things about the sword, the NTHK would have caught them (hopefully) and flagged the sword as gimei. The NTHK may not be held in as high regard as the NBTHK, but it does run a very close second, and their judgment will be be better than any of us peering at your sword through our various screens. (And remember, the sword confirms the signature, so if the sword looks like Kii Yasuhiro work, slight variations in the signature may be tolerated.) Here are some other signed, authenticated Tōichi Yasuhiro swords. https://iidakoendo.com/1359/ https://www.touken-world.jp/search/23506/ Tōichi is Yasuhiro the 2nd. Don't worry about the length. I don't know if the use of "ichi" in the name was a nod to Ichimonji. I think its plausible, but I can't find any discussion of why that name is used.

The headings should be 鍛 and 銘文　 and the type of hada as written is 小杢目

Minor nitpicking: Look again at the headings for #7 and #8. You have the correct meaning, but the readings are off. Not so minor: Look again at the kanji describing the hada in #7.

Also consider the possibility that the "theme" is something you aren't aware of (but was common to a Japanese gentleman of the 1700 or 1800s). A theme can be something quite complicated. The theme may be "fittings made by metalworkers who come from my province", or "fittings representing a theme from Japanese literature" (but whose cohesion is lost to us westerners). Recently there was a tsuba posted that showed a rabbit, the moon, and waves - three things that would seem to be totally random. But then we discover that they are connected to a historical literary source, in addition to having connotations of good luck and prosperity. I think most people who could afford to order or assemble their own koshirae, would probably be fairly sophisticated, and the fittings they choose would/might reflect that sophistication. This is the long way of saying what George and Jean say in their posts above. I also agree completely with Mark when he mentions the unlikelihood of a set of fittings staying together through the centuries, unless it is a specific set like the Gotō mitokoro-mono fittings that are collected as a sub-genre by themselves. (A great example from the Sanō museum, below) https://www.sanobi.or.jp/bijutsukan/collection/sword_fitting.html

氣象如猛勇？ The meaning is a bit of a mystery to me. "Brave, like the weather"... this is the straight translation of the words, but it is probably some literary allusion that carries a different meaning. Some phrase from a classic Japanese or Chinese text. Nothing shows up in a search, so I'm at a loss. (I could be wrong about the last character, but it should still turn up in a search. Alas, I'm drawing blanks.

白氣映ノ立ツ板目ノ肌合ニ匂口ノ締マル小沸出来ノ直刃ヲ焼キ細カニホッレガ絡ミ Shirakeutsuri (also spelled shirekeutsuri) -no-tatsu itame no hada-ai ni nioiguchi no shimaru ko-nie-deki no suguha wo yaki hosokani hotsure ga karami 帽子ガ丸ク掃掛ケテ稍深ク返ルナド boshi ga maruku hakikakete yaya fukaku kaeru nado 南北朝期ノ同派ノ特色ヲ示ス優品也 Nanbokuchō-ki no dōha no tokushoku wo shimesu yuhin nari 時在己亥暦霜月 I'm not sure if he is just abbreviating the kanji 時, or if he is using a variant like 时. You can notice that the longer he writes sayagaki, the more confident and almost literary he becomes, often using a kanbun phrase (the date in this sayagaki), or unusual kanji rather than the standard kanji. This is evident with the use of 稍 as well. It is a seldom-used kanji meaning "somewhat" or "slightly". Also, note the difference between the big ツ and small ッ which can also cause confusion. You got most of it right, but a few things threw you off which (as you said) make the whole a bit difficult. The verbs and adverbs are accompanied by okurigana, so if you don't know you are looking at a verb (絡み) or an adverb (丸く) you are sort of guessing at the meaning. Of course, with kanji, you can often make a good guess at the meaning, but sometimes you can be way off. No need to look for hidden meanings in these sayagaki. I think its an honest, straightforward appraisal of the sword. Congratulations.

I think there are a lot of swords out there, and there is no particular reason to fall in love with this sword. It is an average, unsigned and shortened blade, in need of a polish, which may make your total investment more than the finished product is worth. However, if you are already in love with it, you should ask to see a copy of the registration certificate, just to confirm the length of the sword, if nothing else. I would also ask the dealer if there are any fatal flaws in the sword. I don't know anything about this group. Their invisibility is, I think, a design feature, and it makes me suspicious. I think a group that purports to be authenticating swords, but has no contact number, website, or other details, ought to be viewed with maximum skepticism. This paper confers no status or desirability or value to this sword. The only info I can find on them, is an Osaka dealer who seems to be offering the authentication services of this group for 10,000 yen (~US$90) per paper.

Yes, you got it. 江州彦根住 Gōshū Hikone-jū 藻柄子入道宗典製 Sōheishi (aka Mogarashi) Nyūdō Sōten-sei The market is full of fakes. This one looks like it merits a close look by someone who knows Sōten well. Obviously it has seen better days, but first things first. Determine if it is an authentic Sōten, and then figure out how/if it should be restored. In the meantime, handle with care.

A new group - 銃砲刀剣研究会 (Jūhō Tōken Kenkyūkai) Guns and Swords Research Association. I think this group is affiliated with a dealer in Osaka. There was a query here recently about this same type of paper. Not to be confused with NBTHK.

It looks like フクヲカ. Probably in this case it is the surname of the owner. It can also be a location name, but in this context I'm guessing it is a last name.

I think you ought to consider the strong possibility that this was not found on a Korean battlefield. Maybe it was acquired during a trip to Japan?

I'm afraid the owner will remain a mystery unless there is a tag or other identifying document that came with the sword. The inscription on the sword itself (if any) will tell you who the maker was, and possibly a year of manufacture, but only very rarely will it say anything about the owner (with one recent sword on this forum being an exception).