Denis V

Guess this is rather clear now. Thank you very much gentlemen! Really Appreciate the help. Denis

Thanks a lot all! The knowledge and expertise on this forum never stops to amaze me.

Hmmmm... the plot thickens... In any case, thank you John, Jean and Chris. All look very probable to me... this kanji is killing me. so should i just pick the smith that’s best rated?

Another overall pic of the sword...

Dear fellow enthusiasts, I just bought a new gunto for my collection, but i keep struggeling with the kanji signatures. could somebody please help? The closest i got is “kanehisa”. The “hisa” looks rather straight forward, but the “kane” I’m not sure about. Then again, I might even be mistaken about that one. I also noticed a “w” stamp on top and bellow the signature. I remember a post where there was some interest in these as well. Any info would be great. Hope somebody can help. Thanks a lot. Denis

Hi Bruce, not sure if you already have this one, but just stumbled upon another Mantetsu that seems to have the “w” stamp. https://www.artswords.com/a_minty_gunto_mounted_mantetsu_sword_091812.htm even though it’s already sold, the pictures are clear and good for the records. Denis

Spot on Hamfish, and you’re correct for the French. Some google attempts and you’ll find the French infantry sabre model 1855 which looks exactly the same as the pics.

Hello Kenny, interesting find. My first thought went to a police parade sabre. But two things don’t match. The two suspension rings and the fact that there is no metal ornate on the back and side of the handle... which is very specific. in the Fuller and Gregory book I found a drawing of such a sword like yours with these two specific characteristics and it states: “regulation c. 1873 pattern marines and marine artillery offecers and NCO’s sword” a picture of the back of the pommel would be interesting. Sometimes this is the place where specific indications are. Denis

I’ve always wondered if there are sarute who can go all the way round the kabuto gane? All mine are stuck on one side and can’t be flipped to the other side. Here the sarute looks very big. The tsuba and koshirae in general on this sword are not even well copied. As far as the habaki is concerned, i also always believed they never came with a number on it. But this is the beauty of the board, you learn every day :-)

Never tried it myself, but I always heard that when you put a type 95 sword back together after taken the tsuba and tsuka of, you can’t put it firmly back together again. They tend to jiggle a bit afterwards. For me that has always been a reason not to mess with them, but do correct me if I’m wrong. Denis

Nice. Looking forward to that, John.

Trystan, I totaly agree. A good sword always looks better with a tassel. Unfortunately, tassels are so expensive. Also, fake swords are not always easy to spot, but a tassel is even harder. is there a way to distinguish a real from a fake one? Or does it just comes down to trusting your dealer? Denis

Great looking collection Trystan. just a general question to you guys; do you always buy your swords with tassel, or do you add it later on? I see a lot of swords with tassels on the board, but personally , I only have one in my collection which I bought with the swords... otherwise, lots of tassel-less swords out there. Well, at least in Belgium anyway... Denis

Looks perfect Neil. So glad you included Emura! so interesting to see your list, because in my humble starter collection, half are mentioned. So you must be right on availability and price Denis

Thank you all for the info. Some real nice examples here. Good to hear the basic emura signature has been spotted before and might even be his. I’ve been tying to make a more clear pic of the hamon, but unfortunately , based on the state of the blade, i haven’t been able to produce better pics. The hamon looks suguha, but hard to tell. Since those blades aren’t dated, is there a way to tell when they were forged and wether they were produced in jail?