hybridfiat

Does anyone know what happened to the small number of nihonto that were on display at the old Rotunda museum in Woolwich? I remember seeing some nice examples of nihonto there in the mid 80s, including a massive katana that had a mihaba of at least 30mm. The description was of a custom sword possibly made for a sumo wrestler. Id be interested to know if they are still on display somewhere.

"It's true: I'm not particularly diplomatic" Boy I thought it was only the english that were good at understatement!? Reinhard Ive learnt more from your forthright utterances than any other keep it up

As a novice myself I understand the difficulty of not knowing what nihonto is truly worth. The temptation is to bid so that "bargain" doesnt slip by. Truly there are a lot of reasonable swords out there and more will come along. Take the time to learn and you WILL have to let a couple of real bargains slip by before the you are ready. As Ive said before, "a bargain you are not happy with is no longer a bargain".

Thank you Reinhart, Ive enjoyed this far more than Id expected. The lesson you and the other contributors have given was well structured, easier to follow and more interesting than some of the more esoteric discussions that have been posted on this fascinating subject.

Correct me if I am wrong, but the impression I get from reading about schools and classifing swords is that the smiths did not have an exact template. This is contrary to our modern desire to pigeonhole everything using some form of measure set in stone. The smiths didnt have a set of standards similar to our international standard system. They made long,medium and short swords and tantos, depending on the need or desire of the client. They made in a style but not to a fixed template. Some had a lot of curve and some didnt. But I dont get the impression that a particular school said to it's members, you will have a curve that starts exactly here and a sori of this much. Is this a fair comment?

Get well soon Brian. Dont give the nurses a hard time or youll get all your meds PR

Seen em before too. Caricature of a large eared rabbit.

I agree, a sword with a MOROHA-ZUKURI BLADE 27-3/4"just sold for $2300. I asked the seller for more pics which he promised but none eventuated so I let it go but it should have gone for more.

If these ARE cataloged could they be posted here for those of us who cannot see good tsuba in the flesh?

I was about to get all hot under the collar till I read that. Good idea really. Legal too :lol:

Ainu perhaps?

I agree with your reasoning. I cannot give you an answer Im afraid.

My guess is Its a yari kanna, a small hand plane used to access the corners when doing fine fitting. They came in a variety of sizes and are still made and used today. The flat side curved away slightly and has a convex surface. Ive been trying to find a good original yari kanna for ages. They come up on fleabay occasionally, missnamed as ninja weapons.

Just a hint from another novice, try taking the pics indoors using an indirect artificial light. Sunlight washes out the features. Place a small piece of paper on the blade to help the camera to focus.

Austenitic stainless is very resistant to rust but is generally softer than martenitic SS, that tends to be much harder and brittle. Martenitic is magnetic and austenitic is not, austenitic is used for sinks etc.

Far less romantic and swashbuckling though

Thanks for the help chaps. I wasnt refering to any particular style of type of axe just sounding out 'those that know' about something that has piqued my curiosity for years. I believe that crossed battleaxes is a family mon. So why if the smiths were so particular about the manufacture of blades are there no juyo examples of war axe complete with hamon. I could speculate and say it is because axes use a lot of steel compared to a sword and that axes were a peasants tool.

It just seems strage that despite the wealth of visual information on the net and in books about the samurai weapons scarcely a pic or a peep about axes. Yet they have always featured prominantly in fighting around the world.

Just googled Kaifu school but got no hits. I take it Ill need to source a very specialised book on the subject. Hmmmm.... not worth it I think

Now I realise that axes are not strictly nihonto but Ive no-one else to ask. Did the Japanese make them? Did they use the same techniques as swords if they did. I saw the wonderful display of presentation edged weapons given to Queen Victoria by the Japanese emperor and each and every blade had the same hamon right down to the arrowheads. But I cant recal any axes. Im just curious.

I watched with great interest but resisted the temptation to bid. I would have liked the little nagamaki style tanto more as a piece to go with my nagamaki waki but at $3500 it was wayyyy out of my league. Ill keep looking around.

I remember a saying about pipes: " A pipe gives a wise man time to think and formulate an answer that is full of wisdom and sense and it give a fool something to stick in his mouth"

Definitely a site to bookmark and a name to remember. Im suprised a cashed up collector hasnt had a local bikie gang "sort him out".