drbvac

I think this is translated as hiro yasu, and ir is ensuite for the fuchi kashira and tsuba as well as the kojiri on the saya. Anyone know anything about him?

heres another pic / sorry, didnt know that it had been posted and dont know how to delete it! Quite a story with this blade, when purchased the showa stamp was actually hidden on the tang as it was filled in with colored wax or dirt of some type and I discovered it while oiling the blade as some of it dissolved in the choji oil! I then put a little lighter fluid on the area and -- the stamp appeared. The dealer in montreal was upset as he said he didnt see it before he bought it and sent me a tsuba, a sword rack and an antique print of a samauri in compensation. The tsuba, koshi, and all the furnitire is signed as well so I dont think I got burned too badly but you can never tell!@

Helps a lot, and I think it was forged in the 30's and had an acceptance stamp placed at the beginning of the war. It certainly looks gendaito but I cant make out any great hada like on my other blades. It is almost polished like chrome above the hamom which is really clear, but I will await the arrival of better pics to add to the discussion.

heres a couple more pictures I took with an old 35 mm ten years ago. Better quality than the digital - I have a better close up camera at the offcie I will take home. I should take better pics of all of my swords I guess for insurance if nothing else.

http://home.earthlink.net/~steinrl/kanefusa.htm This link may work, the mei they show is not this one but he did sign as you read it. I wish I could take clearer pics with my digital.

Hi: I am Brian B from Canada and have been interested in Japanese swords and edgged weapons since I was a small child many years ago. About 15 years ago I began keeping my eye open for them and have collected and sold several over the years and still have 8 that I think I will keep. I have a Kanemitsu of Mino tachi, from the 1440's and an unsigned katana possibly from Nanbokucho era, ,maybe Naoe Shizu in Koshirae with tsuba by Kinai of Echizen and soon as I figure how to take clear pictures I will run them by you folks to see what you think! This sword is in question is in koshirae with a drgaon motif which are signed signed by hiro yasu 18th century. The blade is what I am interested in and I wish I could have gotten better pictures of the hamon which is clear and the hada which is not. I have come to the conclusion after some research and asking others that it is a non tradionally forged blade by the 23rd generation Kanefusa, probably in the late 1930's as it is signed as he did but it has a showa stamp near the top of the tang. The horimono are beautiful and I know he made both gendaito and other blades so how can I determine which this is even though it has the showa stamp? Nice to be able to discuss these from afar as there is no one within 1000 miles to show any of this stuff to!