SteveM

Fairly long sword, only slightly suriage (I think), double bo-hi on one side, single bo-hi on the other... this could be interesting.

I have to doubt the authenticity of the hakogaki... which is OK, because the tōsōgu themselves look nice. Its just the writing on the box that looks dodgy.

If possible, forget about what is written on the nakago for a moment. Imagine it is blank. Does the sword look like an actual Suishinshi Masahide sword? Does the shape, the hada, the tip, the hamon, have the qualities of a Suishinshi Masahide sword? If so, its a good thing, and you can start to debate the merits of the signature. He is a big name. People will go to great lengths to fake a big name (so, yes, it isn't strange to find a long, counterfeit name).

仙臺国住藤原国包 Sendai kuni jū Fujiwara Kunikane The "kane" bit is cropped, so I can't say for sure this is what it says, but since you mention the sword is a Kunikane sword, and since it resembles his signing style, its not so much of a leap of faith to call this signature "Kunikane". (As to whether it is authentic or not, that is a different matter, and one that requires a more expert opinion). The attached is an authenticated Kunikane, for reference https://www.touken-world.jp/search/23320/

Its the era name. The whole thing is 享和二年八月吉日 真之甲伏鍛此二刀限余不造 Kyōwa ninen hachigatsu kichijitsu Mano kōbuse kono nitō kagiri amari tsukurazu A lucky day in August 1802 Made in kōbuse style ... (?) I don't know what is meant by the bit after that, but my guess is that this is part of a two-sword set that was made like this, and that it was a unique set ("made no others like it"). He often used 15-plate kōbuse style, and engraved that on his swords. This only mentions kōbuse (nothing about how many layers).

於　= "oite" or "okeru". Okeru is a verb, or, more properly, a word that serves as a verb linker (in English grammar I think we call it a "collocation"). It means in or at. It is just an auxiliary word that indicates where the action is taking place. 辺　= "hotori" or "atari". In this context, it means "by" or "near". In the tang, it is written using the more complicated, older form of the kanji: 邉. 麓　= "roku". Usually combined with 山 (san) to form the compound word 山麓 (foothills, foot of the mountain).

濃洲関住兼氏鍛之 Nōshū Seki-jū Kaneuji kitau kore Same smith, slightly different signature as the one in the thread below https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/1433-gunto-mei-translation/

日本刀一振南満州鉄道株式会社 所有主　阿部文雄 Nihontō hitofuri Minami Manshū Tetsudō Kabushikikaisha Shoyūnushi Abe Fumio Japanese sword (one) South Manchurian Railway Corporation Owner: Fumio ABE The cloth tags also belong to Fumio Abe, and give his address and the name of a neighborhood association (presumably near where he lived). The address is Motobuto in Urawa (close to Tokyo). Urawa is a fairly major town. The section of Motobuto is still there, but the address system changed, so you'd have to find an old map to pinpoint the location.

Nice hada and nice hamon are not qualities I would normally associate with kazu-uchi mono. Signature and date inscribed on the sword are also not something I would associate with kazu-uchi mono. Kazu-uchi mono are typically unremarkable blades. However, there is a dealer in Japan who was describing one of his authenticated and dated swords as "kazu-uchi mono". It seemed wierd to me. There was a bit of discussion on this forum about it. The thread below isn't the one I was thinking about, but it may be helpful. https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/2099-kazu-uchi-mono/ The one thing I can say for sure is... you need to show the whole sword if you want to get some opinions on it.

Looks like 輕 to me as well. Not a kamon, but a mark of the military branch to whom the owner belonged, I think. (light tank division 輕戦車 or finance division 輕理部, maybe?)

天正十年　Tenshō 10 (1582)

OK, so the whole name would be Kangi-nyūdō Akihide, showing that he has some special devotion or affiliation with Kangiten https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kangiten 於相武台下歓喜入道明秀作之 Oite Sabudai shita, Kangi nyūdō Akihide saku kore Made by Kangi nyūdō Akihide, in Sōbudai.

歓喜 using an old variant of 歓 →　歡 Means joy, jubilation, delight.... Does the sword have any other markings?

Hard to say. Sort of looks like 時 (toki, meaning time, but it could be part of a name as well)

It is a defacto stamp of approval on the cutting test. Another way to think of this; a Kiyomaro blade is so precious, what's the point of trying to tart it up with a fake cutting test? 雁金 is indeed literally translated as "golden wild goose". Its just a figurative naming for how the body is splayed out for the test. I don't know how common cutting tests are on Kiyomaro blades. Pretty rare, I would think. Maybe Jussi has some information on this?

Some more papered Shinano-no-kami Rai Nobuyoshi https://www.touken-sakata.com/刀剣一覧/短刀-銘-菊紋-信濃守藤原来信吉-新刀/ https://www.k-sword.com/goods.php?id=497

Hello Eric, Take a look at either of the links below.

武蔵国住内藤耕銕作之 Musashi-no-kuni jū Naitō Tagayasu* tetsu saku kore 平成二年庚午長月吉日 Heisei ninen kanoe-uma Nagatsuki kichijitsu Tagayasu Naitō of Musashi province made this from steel. Musashi is the classic name for the area where Tokyo is located. There are multiple possible readings for the given name. The date is 1990 (Heisei 2, September).

素銅広地木瓜形 片切彫金銀色絵 象嵌片櫃 銘　伊東深水画意 雲州？ 昭和酉？年新春吉日 寒山誌 Suaka plate in mokko shape Katakiri-bori with gold and silver iroe inlay one hitsu ana Mei Inspired by the art of Itō Shinsui Unshu (?) Showa year of the bird (1969 or 1981), Spring Kanzan I can't get the second half of the signature, or the bits in orange. It would be helpful to see the actual piece. But I am bewildered at the reference to Itō Shinsui. Perhaps my reading is wrong of that bit is wrong.

Is it a tsuba that is somehow associated with the artist Itō Shinsui? 伊東深水

朱白堂　Shuhakudō (art name of the artist) 貴秀 Takahide (personal name of the artist) Late Edo metalsmith according to Wakayama. Wakayama is uncertain of the middle kanji of the "art name", so it is left as blank in his encyclopedia of metalsmiths, but it seems fairly clearly to be 白 (haku) to me. Nice design. I like how the clouds are handled in this piece.

This is the first time for me to come across this term "Aname". Since it seems completely specific to the image of the grass growing through the skull, I would think it is a very unusual and rare topic for tōsōgu, but I will keep an eye out for other examples from now on. It would seem to be a niche sub-genre of "nozarashi" which just means "exposed to the elements" (literally, exposed on the field). Nozarashi has since come to be known as a shorthand for bones/skulls left on the battlefield, reminding bushi of the brevity of life, and harmonizing with the Buddhist doctrine of dukka - inherent suffering in life. I don't think Basho coined the term, but I guess he was responsible for its adoption as a "meme" in the Edo period. I will look out for specific references to this as well. ”Nozarashi” is also the name of a story in rakugo, but this dates from the 1800s, so Basho's Nozarashi no Kikō well predates the rakugo story. In any event, I think the tsuba in the picture somehow wraps up all of these things in a way that is very sophisticated, and hints at the high level of erudition the original owner must have had.

Looks like #1 伊藤正義　Itō Masayoshi #2 江府住並壽　Kōfu-jū Namitoshi #3 江府住正利　Kōfu-jū Masatoshi

Yes. I think we've seen this mei here on the board recently.

↑ Yes, I agree with what Stephen wrote. Tawara Tōda (aka Fujiwara no Hidesato). He rid the area around Lake Biwa of a giant centipede, using his bow and arrows, which earned him the thanks of Otohime and the Lord of Ryūgūjō. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fujiwara_no_Hidesato