msdt

Hi Geraint, Thanks for the very clear explanation of the meaning of koshirae. As there appear to be 2 different sets of assembly markings, it implies that the naginata was one of a set, so your suggestion of a parade piece would fit with that. Cheers, Tony

Thanks everyone. Have attached some more (not very good) pics of the blade. To me the blade looks a bit crude, it has clearly had a wire wool job to remove surface rust at some recent time. Re the nakago, it seems a match for the shaft, the wood seems to be cut for a reasonable fit, and the hole in the shaft seems to be original and matches. If it is essentially for parades in the late Edo period would more effort go into the shaft rather than the blade? What does koshirae refer to in this case? Cheers, Tony

As there have been hardly any fairs in England this year, and I nearly always get my artefacts that way, I recently put in a couple of bids for an auction - and, now own a naginata!!! Know nothing about them really, just thought that there can't be many in the UK. I like to handle things, so for me it's a bit risky bidding based on photos. It was listed as late Edo, which I assume is right. Blade is 12 1/2 inches (the actual blade with a cutting edge), total length 88 inches (224 cm). Seem to be some old marks for matching the blade to the shaft. Does anyone have any knowledge about these? Cheers, Tony