Cajunsteve

Ken, Wow! New Orleans and Hawaii are worlds apart. Ed Marshall is about 2 1/2 hours from here. I will pm to see if he can give me a closer recommendation....Steve B.

Grev, I'm in New Orleans and not aware of any Nihonto clubs in the area.

Gentlemen, just put cotton swab and alcohol to it and .....still there.

Stephen, why the signature under the Habaki?

Well, I picked up the sword late yesterday afternoon from my elderly friend.This was his fathers sword which was brought to the states just after the war. The sword wasn't a lot of money $500. Had a little time this morning and shot some photos, was not an easy task. My apologies to those photographers out there. I did have a little surprise, I removed the habaki and underneath I discovered mei on both sides. Any thoughts or opinions are much appreciated....Steven B.

Geraint, thank you for your insight. I have seen this sword about 4 years ago. I expected it was carried with the WWII mounts. The Tsuba and blade gave me the idea it was older. I will indeed try and purchase the sword, look forward to doing research and share detailed photos with the NMB. I appreciate the assistance/guidance from the members.....Steve

Thank you Stephen. It's amazing that the blade could be from the early 17th Century. So much history it has seen....Steve

John, It's not a lot of money about $500 for the sword. I am hoping to find some information of the maker and age of the blade....Steve

I am new to this message board and collecting and have an opportunity to purchase an old sword from an elderly friend. He has owned it many years and know very little about it. I showed him how to remove the grip and he sent me photos. The sword measures 87.6 cm and the blade 69.85 cm, The Saya is wood and the sword mounts appear to be from the WWII era. I believe it has an old Tsuba(iron) and blade. The Habaki with nice cat scratch. There are no arsenal marks on the tang. The Mei was translated by Manuel on the NMB as 左近将監藤原盛綱作 Sakon shogen Fujiwara Moritsuna saku. Thanks again Manuel! Grev. has been a big help and I have learned about the meaning of Sakon shogen and the Fujiwara name use. I looking for any information on the maker and general opinions on this sword. My apologies for the photos as the sword is 6 hours away and were provided to me by my elderly friend. Many thanks in advance for your inputs.....Steve

Many thanks Manuel for the quick response....Steve

Hello everyone, I have a very good friend with an old sword. He is an elderly gentleman and did the best he could on the photos. The sword measures 87.6 cm and the blade 69.85 cm. I have adjusted the photos to help with the mei. I am new to collecting any help with the signature is very much appreciated. Regards....Steve

Early Edo, possibly Tosho revival tsuba measuring 6.45 cm X 6.19 cm X 2.65 mm with deep chocolate brown patina. Any opinions as to what school? Translation of the letters? Many thanks....Steve

Kyle, many thanks I really appreciate it. That's very interesting the five Confucian virtues. I photographed it because it looked different from the others, one of two with Japanese lettering in raised gold. I looked at the Wallis label tsuba and it does look like the "Kunimichi" signature.

Grev, Thanks for the response. I tried to photograph each one and then the back so it could be paired, I guess a numbered system would have helped. I have basic knowledge of these mostly from what information comes from the tags. I did some research and understand some basic differences(edges,thickness, metal type, and a little on design). Some of these are signed by the makers and this is about a quarter of the total. It's interesting as to some of the designs and the quality of the artist.....Steve

I am new to this forum and several years ago I purchased a small Tsuba collection(25) pieces from the estate of an old Austrian collector. The gentleman had no heirs with large collections of clocks, watches, icons, painting, etc which he collected during the 1950-60's. Along with the watches and clocks I purchased the Tsuba. The attorney had no idea what these were, I recognized these from 35 years ago when I purchased and old sword from an Army vet. These were thrown in a bag by the attorney. I separated them and wrapped them for protection. The collector purchased from all over the world, some have Wallis & Wallis auction tags and others with inventory descriptions from the seller or collector? I am a novice and have taken photos(front and back) as sample of my collection. I plan to display these and would like a little information in my display. It is quite a interesting collection iron, bronze, mixed metal with some very nice detailing. I have started research and it is overwhelming as to the periods, schools and designs of these pieces. Any comments, information or ideas as to the best way to preserve these is appreciated. I have about 10 with labels attached to the metal that I'm sure should be removed. Thanks....Steve