MHC

Hello all, Ok, I'm still trying to learn details here about Nihonto, so bare with me and even humor me if I'm completely off base on my following observations of the above submitted sword. 1.) The patina on the Nakago would have looked ok...if it had not been cleaned. 2.) Same goes for the freshly polished Habaki. 3.) Additionally, the Mei looks to me to have been done very crudely? 4.) The entire Koshirae looks very pedestrian, to the point of almost looking Rebellion era. How far off am I? Mark

Thanks all for the info. John, is Kelly Hicks currently living in Japan? However, this auction house blocks international bidders and refuses to ship out of Japan, so most likely a moot point. It would appear that if you are not physically IN Japan or have a in country contact {like Kelly Hicks mentioned above?}, it is simply too difficult to cut thru the paperwork to ship a sword out of Japan. Mark

Great, thank you both. The sword is on a Japanese auction site, but I still cannot get clear information as to whether I can bid, win, then ship to Thailand without issues. It appears that considerable paperwork is required to release a sword out of Japan, and having no in country contacts, I'm thinking it is not worth pursuing. More research is needed. Thanks again. Mark

Hello all, More curious then anything else, but the following is a shot of the Nakago of a sword of interest to me. Any help with translation would be of great help. Thank you in advance for your assistane. Mark

Well I'm a mere 63 years old and a newer member to NMB, so unfortunately have not had the opportunity of getting to know Mr. Watson. However, from what I've read so far, and with his direct comments...I like him already, and dare I say, share a lot of his type of attitude. As is often said of missed opportunities, wish this was another time and place. Mark

I'm glad to see a Sashikomi style of final polish, always my personal favorite. Mark

Hello Ronald, Just FYI if you are not currently aware. If you cannot provide an unbroken line of provenance, proving that anything IVORY is at least 100 years old prior to about 1974, you absolutely cannot sell it to any American. Anything ivory made after about 1974 sale if totally illegal. Obama saw to that, additionally some states went even further with that said federal restriction, and implemented additional rules and restrictions pertaining to ivory anything. Yes even pianos with ivory keys and guitars with ivory frets. Hope this email does not irritate you further, it is only meant to aid your future sales attempts. Mark

Hello Matt, At first glance, it looked like a potentially nice blade, but then there is the Nakago. Was the Nakago damaged buy grinding/filing/sandpaper, before you obtained it? That level of damage puts the value in question now. Interestingly too, I've never seen what appears to be a Shirasaya that has been lacquered or one with a Seppa. More knowledgeable folks will most likely chime in soon. Mark

See there you go, I was reading the Mei absolutely incorrectly. I errantly was assuming the name was first, when in fact the name is last......sheeez rookies! I need better/more books, that's the bottom line. Sure wish I could see more Mei's in person, pictures make it tougher to learn. However, seeing blades in person now that I'm in Thailand, it damn near impossible. Mark

Hello Brian, I didn't want to air my apparent ignorance to the whole group, so I tried to send you a PM, but your membership status does not allowed for messaging. So here goes nothing....... I've been learning a lot over the past few years, and I'm just now starting to compare Mei's on swords with existing confirmed examples, to see if I can try to learn. Mainly to see if I can spot Gimei from authentic. Concerning the Katana that you noted above, you had posted pictures of the Nakago, and a link to the signature of the purported sword smith. Here is where I get confused, in that the Mei signature on the link, does not even remotely come close to the Mei on the sword. I'm assuming that I simply don't know what I'm looking at, so could you please shed some light on this matter for me. Thanks in advance for your help. Mark

That's just wrong on so many levels... Mark

Just like 99% of what that auction site has to offer.....Chinese fakes, WWII machine made blades purported to be 16th, 17th, 18th century "treasures", horrible condition, worthless stuff...pluuttttth! {bolwing a massive raspberry}. Mark

Brian, You never did tell us what "papers" the sword has??? Mark

Hello Ron, Sad that you are liquidating your collection, but I understand. No one for me to pass anything along to either, so my time will come as well. I look forward to all your upcoming offerings, although only 1 or so offerings a week is going to be hard to wait on, but will give me a reason to log on! Mark

The kitae ware is not something that you should consider repairing, it is just an artifact of that era of sword making, and part of the "character" of this particular blade. Although it is probably just my eyes playing tricks on me, but I think I can see what appears to be a partial Mei that has been obscured, both directly above and below the crisply chiseled Mei. The Oshigata is picking up what I think I see as well. Also a very, very distinct straight line perpendicular to the blade axis, directly above the bottom Nakago-ana. Could be a wear mark from a previous Habaki, when the sword was longer, but the mark is in a very strange location for that possibility, so it could be something else altogether..... What type of PAPER, does the blade have? Mark

Even at $2500...please take the advise of the good folks here on the forum, and save yourself possible grief, simply buy a quality blade from one of the proven members here, or at least a known quotient from Japan. My .02 worth. Mark

Hello Gary, I have no experience with the Japanese EMS system, so I can give you no advise, sorry. Hello Ken, So for clarification, you paid DHL the $225, DHL shipped the drum, you received the drum, then DHL came back at you for the balance of their claimed $3500? How long did it take for you to receive the drum from the east coast (presumably mainland USA) to (presumably) Hawaii? I ask only because DHL generally uses airmail over the various ponds, so if it took more than a few days, like say a month or so, then it was probably put in a sea going container, and DHL got charged for the entire container, either case, should not have been your problem or bill. Mark

Does not the weight of the Tsuba balance out the entire blade? Thus a larger heavier Tsuba for a longer heavier blade, and then vise versa for a shorter/lighter blade. Did that ever come into play in days of old? Curious monkeys would like to know. Mark

Hello MichaelR, Just out of curiosity, why did DHL hand off your package to the USPS, instead of delivering it straight to you? That seems exceedingly strange? DHL will deliver any package, anywhere, sometimes they transfer to an independent for the final leg, by that entity is still under contract with DHL, and still give you great updates as to progress. No throwing on the lawn, no bogus signatures, no leaving unattended on the porch. Hell, with the last sword delivery, not only did I have to sign for it, but I had to show I.D. & the driver took my picture too! Mark

For what it's worth...and just my .02 worth. I have recently started using DHL for ALL my shipping of important items. I started using them just about 2 years ago. Below is the breakdown of my experience with DHL, 1.) They are expensive (worth every penny). 2.) They are shockingly efficient. 3.) They up date you with absolutely every move the package takes (damn near hour by hour). 4.) They deliver so fast it makes your head spin. I have used them to ship from Japan to the USA, 2 times. Each time less than 48 hour total time frame. I have used them to ship from east coast USA to west coast USA 1 time, slightly less than 24 hour total time frame. I have used them 1 time from England to USA, less than 48 hour total time frame. I personally will no longer use any other mailing/shipping service if given the choice. Mark

Hey there Dale, The forgers out there will go to any length to fool the buying public. It is very simple to add a few punch marks and place a soft metal filler piece at the Nakago-Ana, to give the illusion of being older and have been mounted on a blade. However, all Tsuba's that I have seen that have been mounted, tend to show a shadow line/discoloration/rub marks, where Seppa's would have come in contact with the Tsuba over the years. This example does not appear to show any such telltale indications. So buyer beware....... Mark

Here is another one, originally titled "The Coast Watcher". Mark

Hey there Michael, Regardless as to what you spent, if you are happy with them, then you did well, it matters not what others think. The semi mystery mumei katana looks fun to me, I think you will end up learning more from that sword, than you will from the fully documented one. I'm personally way too green at this hobby to comment, just wish I would have been able to get into this obsession when I was your age. Best of luck, and most importantly, ENJOY! Mark

The center symbol is very, very close to the Horiuchi mon. Not identical, but very close...so??? Mark

Yes, I'm a member on numerous Facebook sites, that being one of them, but to date nothing has come up. I'll keep my eyes peeled. Thanks! Mark