Bugyotsuji

That looks to be in lovely condition Ron. Congratulations on the find. Such a sad story regarding international carriage. Has the world gone mad? Oh, and the interesting background information is an informative read too!

Chris, 芳　Yoshinobu?

Ah, so that's where it went. Very clever to find that.

While I agree they are nicely made, 1. The items for auction above are Teppo Netsuke, and not Netsuke Teppo. 2. They are almost identical, except for the Mon, so what does that tell us? 3. The description below clearly says, and the picture shows*... . * Look inside the pan.

Hi Jay, If no-one answers in the meantime, here are some hints. The top certificate shows the registration number column on the right, then a column for the presence or absence of Mei, second from right. Column three is measurements. Fourth from the right is a description of the Kozuka. and on the left nearest the photo is the estimated age. The bottom certificate says 水戸作　

They are called "Namako-gane", or sea-slug/sea-cucumber (metal) fitting. Sometimes they are solid, and sometimes the trigger pulls back into a hollow. A kind of trigger guard on some larger guns as Ron says. Interesting-looking gun, Dan.

Did you get the translation, Brian? His name comes up as Kito first on that page, and Mototada as an alternative reading. From the tantalizing glimpses, a nice looking Koshirae package.

Great thread, great pictures and very informative.

Ajiro means woven bamboo, ie for conical hats, Jingasa, fans etc. and conjures up summer images. This looks like four Uchiwa fans to me, and indeed highly unusual, agreed. http://thumbnail.image.rakuten.co.jp/@0 ... 801195.jpg

Darcy got there first! Yours is a (Gunbai) Kara/To Uchiwa in a thick circle. 太輪に唐団扇 Originally this Gunbai was used by Takeda Shingen, and also by the Kodama and the Okudaira.

I showed this set to my NBTHK Sensei yesterday and he suggested they might have been made for "Gotaiten". We were sitting watching the KoBudo Sai, so the conversation ended there, but it could be a thought to follow up on perhaps?

Marius, The very first Kanji? Is 銘 Mei, which is not Mumei, but Fumei, that is not clear, or unreadable, so it does have a Mei. Below it says 後代　or later generation.

A lovely example, Ron. Many thanks for posting, and to the owner for kind permission.

Kunitaro San, For appreciating the English language and for polishing one's own ability in that language, I would agree with you regarding Shakespeare. You may find it easier to read an easy edition of a Shakespeare play in advance to prepare yourself, though. When I read Yoshikawa Eiji's Story of Heike in English it opened my eyes to that world, and it also made me appreciate Kyoto in a way I had never experienced in three years of living there. Every street in Kyoto now rings with history in a way it never did before. If I want to read the Heike Monogatari in Japanese as classical literature, now I would be able to approach it with more confidence, I suspect. The first book helped me to overcome some otherwise almost impossible barriers. It helped me see the whole wood without getting caught in the trees.

Returning to the sensible world for a second, it would not be diplomatic to reveal the name of the lady who owns the Sanchomo in the Okayama Prefectural Museum and the 4 oku that she paid for it.

Guido, maybe he said 800,000,000 Won?

The Yamatorige (Sanchomo in Japanese) Ichimonji changed hands a while back for 400,000,000 JPY, and 7 Oku was offered for another 400 mill sword that the owner refused to sell.

Christian, he is using old characters. As I posted above, "Maybe 刀剣実證鑑定法 by 清水孝教, published by 太陽堂" "Token Jissho Kantei Ho" by Shimizu *Takanori? (*His first name is difficult for me to read), published by Taiyo-Do

Maybe 刀剣実證鑑定法 by 清水孝教, published by 太陽堂

Someone I thought was a trustworthy source told me Ichi Oku = 100,000,000 and then someone else who also knows his onions corrected me and said no, it was actually 2 Oku. I believe 6 Oku is the top price paid for a sword, Guido...no?

Part I has finished and I missed it. Part II runs from Nov 22 until Jan 12th, if anyone is in the area. The castle was lit up this evening. The museum is in part of the former castle grounds. 17 swords, 2 sets of old armour, some scrolls, some lavishly gilded sets of pristine lacquerware, wedding dowries, and some decorated porcelain dishes and bowls. ********************************************* The first 5 Tachi, all Jubun, (Juyo Bunka Zai) were Yoshikane, Chikakane, 2 x Masatsune and a Mei 一. They were carefully chosen to show progression in the development of the Hamon and Ji/hada. No.6 was a Kokuho Tachi by Yoshifusa, who started to get Nioi right and produced rounded and balanced Choji hamon. Three Jubun followed, ie a suriage Fukuoka Ichimonji Katana, and Tachi by Sukezane, and lovely Mitsutada (father? of Nagamitsu). Sadly Nobunaga collected Mitsutada and had most of them suriage'd. No. 10 was a long-Mei Kokuho Nagamitsu, massive Tachi. No. 11 was a Jubun Tachi, another long name Nagamitsu, dated 1289. 5 more Jubun Tachi followed, by Suemori, (Bitchu) Masatsune, San Jo Yoshi-ie, Kikugyo, and a Takamitsu of 1324. Finally another pride and joy, the Kokuho Meibutsu 'Kuki' Masamune Tanto which is rumoured to have cost them 200,000,000 JPY. (Which would be, erm... about 150,000 USD per inch.) List translated by me. All errors are thus mine.

Thanks, Peter, I enjoyed those.

Three hishaku 柄杓, but not the bigger horse ones.

Kutsuwa 轡 handed down in the Mori family (Mori Ranmaru etc., not Mohri), belonged to Mori Nagayoshi. Christian Daimyo. Your Kozuka reminds me of 'Rusu Moyo' that you get with Netsuke. Objects lying around give a strong impression of something not present, in this case a horse. Romantic notions! What kind of splendid horse might be worthy of these, the owner might wonder?

Not that it makes sense, but the top kanji looks to me a bit like Mori 盛 and the bottom like Fuku 福... (?)