Markus

@Jussi Ekholm That walking around part, I did that once and got lost, lol. Walked too far... That was before the smartphone era. A retired local taxi driver "rescued" me and when he asked me what I was doing and I explained I am a sword nerd, he drove me around to show me all the historic sword making sites. He had to quickly stop by his house to tell his wife he will be late for dinner that day, haha. Fond memories.

So, the NBTHK made a mistake. ToBi No. 135 was issued in April of 1968 when the blade was already a JuBun in the new system, but they still reference it as a Kokuhō.

Could not find him either. Looks like we have here an unrecorded smith, Yasuchika (保隣), and his art name, Ichi'enshi (一簷子).

Thank you Glen @GRC ! Happy to attach the other indexes here too. Volume1_Index.pdf Volume2_Index.pdf Volume3_Index.pdf

Hi Grev @kissakai, I am attaching an index here. Volume 5 will contain the big Mito School, plus a couple of others that didn't fit in Volume 4, but much of Volume 5 will be the color part of selected pieces for most schools/artists introduced throughout all volumes. Volume4_Index.pdf

Hi Grev, the project is a joint-venture of the JSS/US and NBTHK AB and EB, and the conditions were laid out that the set will only "go live" when it is completed, i.e., all five volumes out. Until then, it will be direct order through me. Thank you for your understanding.

Forgot to add: For those who did not have prepaid, you can purchase Volume 4 at any time as well. Also, I would like to sincerely thank @Grey Doffin and Barry Hennick for their continuous support proofreading this series! My English can cause serious head-scratching sometimes 😇

Ladies and gentlemen, we are making progress on all fronts! Volume 4 (660 pages) of the Tosogu Classroom project is completed and ready to go. I am initiating the orders for those who have prepaid for the set. As always, if you have any questions, or would like to inform me about an address change, please get in touch with me via markus.sesko@gmail.com.

Before we start, I am not sure if this belongs here or to the Online Sellers or Dealer Showcase subs, so mods, please move if necessary. Just wanted to let you all know that whilst Volume 4 of the Tosogu Classroom is being prepared for being published later this week (yes, its done, just final layout and indexing), I have put together a humble read about Honma 'Kunzan' Junji talking about the Japanese sword world of the early 20th century and right after WWII. It is not so much about blades, but gives an interesting insight into what happened "behind the scenes" at that time, often not mentioned in other publications. Please enjoy, and reach out to me via email or DM if you have any question. https://www.lulu.com/shop/markus-sesko/honma-talks/paperback/product-dy85nwq.html?q=honma&page=1&pageSize=4

We must distinguish between the oldest physical manuscript copy and the oldest content. The oldest manuscript copy of the Ki'ami Bon Mei Zukushi is from the early Muromachi period.

Looking forward, and thx to you and the JAS Team! 🎄

Hi Barrie, Please send me an email to markus.sesko@gmail.com to confirm your mailing address. I had placed the order for Volume 3 for all who had prepaid a while back. Apologies that your copy apparently did not arrive. Upon confirmation, I will have Lulu print and ship another copy to your place right away.

The oshigata of this blade, Jūyō Shinsa 49, just as a reference.

In regards of the upcoming Dai Tōken Ichi (DTI), I was asked by a few readers if I can do another 50% off eBook sale, which I happily comply with ☺️ https://markussesko.com/2025/10/21/dti-ebook-super-sale-2/

Basically, it boils down from my standard (non-translation related) consultation fee of $125/h. Has to make sense for both parties. For example, I would never dare to charge, let's say, $5k for a huge collection of objects, but which likely will only reel in $15k at the end of the day, that's not economically reasonable. It really depends on the breakdown @Hoshi posted earlier.