Jacob1968

somewhere on the internet but so beautiful and true: Thanks for the additional information Pete. The issue with the mei is not so much the style but the wording. When I was in contact with Markus Sesko about it he seemed to feel it may be an early signature before the smith was given his honorary title. There don’t seem to be any other examples of this exact signature though. For all the research I’ve done looking for other examples of his work to compare my blade to, I’m not confident about my ability judge what I’m seeing. I don’t want to get too caught up in wanting it to be genuine. My feeling is that it is based on other examples in pictures, but maybe I’m seeing the things that back that up not the things that undermine it. I understand what you’re saying about not getting hung up on signatures. I suppose my reason for trying to assess if the mei is genuine or not is mostly that as a novice I don’t really know if it’s a good blade or not, and if the mei is real I would think it should be good, and study it as such. I’m not in a position to look at any blades other than my own, except in books and online. Maybe one day I will get a chance to have someone look at it who could tell me more. This blade is the one that got me looking at nihonto in depth and sparked a real interest for me, so even if it is gimei, it’s given me a lot. Thanks again.

somewhere on the internet: Gimei determination (and shinsa in general) is a very imprecise thing. Even if you get a top expert in Japan to give their opinion, it is still an opinion. They don't have any magic abilities. I think only the most advanced collectors can even attempt to make a gimei decision. Of course, if important features are "way off", then it might be easy to say gimei. A less-advanced collector will attempt to simply compare the "handwriting" of the mei to examples in the famous books. But I wouldn't be very confident in the results. One gimei parameter that is not mentioned much is that the chances of gimei are much higher with certain names. Two that come to mind are Bizen Yasumitsu and Sukesada. I was told by a collector/dealer in Japan that Bizen Yasumitsu has about a 70% chance of being false. If the name is obscure, it is quite unlikely to be gimei (in my opinion). The general belief is that blades were falsely signed for monetary reasons, to sell to unwary customers. Swordsmithing has always been a business, so there is incentive to make blades that sell for higher prices. Pete

Any conclusions?

The biggest problem is the image quality from the web

Thanks for expressing your impressions. Unfortunately, the pictures do not fully reflect the impression of the sword. The dragon is engraved on a blade 19 cm long .The engraving is 11.5cm long and what you see in the pictures is its multiplication in reality is fantastic.Be sure it is a real sword it is a real dragon maybe a great forgerie but certainly not "three dollar bill."

Maybe better light

Yes it requires polishing, unfortunately it is not easy to find professional, around Brussels_I think.

Here you are!

Thank you very much Ed,Bugyotsuji ,Stephen,Geraint. I greatly appreciate all of your help. Have a Happy Holiday and I hope a Great New Year All the best. Jacob

Thank you, I will try to compare.

This is surely funny but I don't understand,I am new here

Is there no date in the inscription?

Hi everyone . This is my first post. I wanted to share my happiness. This is yesterday's find at a flea market. I would like to ask for feedback to help you determine the date, read the inscription accurately. My Japanese friend encrypted the blacksmith as: Ikkansai Shigetoshi (1838-1906) Can anyone help?