charlesf

Some years ago I bought an Emura in auction at Stamford,I had been sent on a 'mission' by my pal Yorkie who declared his non-interest when I told him about the signature! In type 98 mounts the blade was in good polish and had a really nice choji-gunome hamon,cost about £300 + train fare from York and back,it was a good sword so I'm not sure how the signature thing worked out. One of my current Emura has the 'Chounsai Emura saku' signature which I reckon to be a custom order with slight koshi-zori and a narrow gunome hamon bordering on juzuba in Suya sword shop mounts. charles.

A truly international endeavour . . . . For sale in the UK. Sold in the US. A great addendum provided by an Aussie! Thanks and regards, charles.

Kyu-gunto was 'passed'. Nagamitsu made £1,100 hammer. charles.

A taster . . . . charles.

Whilst not really my thing I was quite impressed by Lot 3564 in Toovey's upcoming sale on 26th November of edged weapons,firearms,medals and militaria. There is also a heap of gunto,one 'Nagamitsu',see; https://www.tooveys.com/online-catalogue/firearms-and-edged-weapons charles

Steven, Tachi-mei is a sword where the signature faces away from the body when the sword is worn with cutting edge down. Katana-mei is when the signature faces out with cutting edge worn up. charles.

Jan is referring to a different sword in another auction ; charles.

This is the 'Toshihide' from the Mike Noel collection sold by Dore & Rees ? regards, charles.

Never mind,you've kept your powder dry for another adventure. Did you see the Cadmore Hideaki has resurfaced? best regards, charles.

I agree,the buyer was obviously convinced that this was Horii Toshihide,I had some doubts . . . . unless it was made just before he passed away when his work was not its best. charles.

Yes,I watched,you made a good call on price,well done! charles.

Thank you for posting the link,while it remains an object that is unattainable I very much enjoyed reading its history and the images of a wonderful blade. charles.

Cadmore Hideaki offered at £2,600 and 'passed'. charles.

I would be interested in knowing the result as I checked this sword out but had a number of reservations about it. There is a sword in kyu-gunto mounts by the same smith when he used 'Minamoto Hideaki' as his mei at Cadmore Auctions,lot 291,10th-12th November. It looks genuine but is almost mu-zori,maybe a custom order,copy of a kinnoto? 30 years ago I owned a 'Hideaki' dated 1933 and bought off my old pal Yorkie for £1,400,he described it as "the best f**king gendaito I've ever seen"!!! Gone now,sold when hard times struck.. . . . best regards, charles.

I doubt that you will get a clear view of the jihada as it looks as though the blade has had a recent polish judging by the very shiny finish. The owner has posted a message about this sale here on the board under 'Auctions and Online Sales',see 'upcoming auction' by Mike Noel,you might contact him for further information on this sword. Regards, charles.

Repurposed for iaido,you're probably correct about it being for a Type 3 although I have seen Type 98's with blades drilled with two holes. charles.

Here's a nice one from Ikedaart,doesn't say how much it sold for but interestingly is signed katana mei,also shows the Emura elongated kissaki whicj I think makes them look sharper and more elegant. charles.

Dear Sam, You won't spoil my mood! I thoroughly enjoy the discussion and interaction on this thread and your input is most valuable,it's always good to have a different perspective on the issue. Thanks and kind regards, charles.

Thanks Pav, Yes,I got quite excited at finding another Emura . . . . . . until I saw the price. The seller did have two,one mounted and the other a bare blade,this would be a couple of years ago,both blades in poor condition with lots of pitting,I did email him for his best price,he replied "Make an offer ....". I thought he might be offended by £300 so didn't respond . . . . Like the No. 10 bus,there'll be another come along shortly! regards, charles.

Sam, There are Emura blades 'out there',I know of two in an English antique shop in poor condition and grossly over priced (I think one of Pav's photos is one of them). I think your estimate of 'several thousand' blades is a bit strong considering that the personnel involved were not trained sword smiths having served an apprenticeship but inmates schooled by an amateur sword smith. Although the forge was state sponsored that would not guarantee an endless flow of raw material,the economy was on a war footing so there must have been restrictions on supply,priority (who got first call) and transport. I also read that Emura-san was responsible for all yaki-ire,which I presume means from applying the clay to quenching the blade,all very time consuming and would limit output,the Yasukuni smiths produced just over 8,000 swords from 1933-1945 and while it's wrong to draw a direct comparison it gives at least some idea of sword production. Emura-to were produced with power hammers apparently,which would be quicker than hand forging but still a lengthy process. I am a big Emura fan,I think they show 'character' as opposed to many RJT blades that can look a bit bland and those that I own and have owned have all been good in the hand,well built and designed for combat. Keep the Emura faith! charles.

Thank you! Last picture; 'Hizen Kuni No Ju Ise Daijo Fujiwara Yoshihiro'. I've no idea whether 1st or 2nd generation. charles.

Your sword has nice fittings but is an iaito with an alloy,not steel,blade,made for the practice of iaido. charles.

All in,delivered to my door it totalled £510 which I think is reasonable for a signed Hizen-to albeit not in perfect condition. As far as I can tell the signature is good and compares favourably to those shown on commercial sword sites. It was a bit of a no-brainer for me,I've always admired Hizen-to but they are usually out of my reach financially so this is an opportunity to study one first-hand while not breaking the bank. charles.

Further images . . . . . . charles

Just arrived this morning,my latest 'rescue' to be housed in my orphanage for rough swords . . . . What you see here is what I had to use to bid on (I can hear the groans already!),so you can determine whether or not you would have tried to buy it! Auction house described it as 70 cms blade,they invariably measure from tip to guard so no surprise to find it measures a touch under 27". It is genuine ubu,the brown streaks are grease,there are one or two areas of light pitting,a slight 'wriggle' in the middle of the blade and the very tip of the kissaki has gone. Tsuka has lost amost all of its same,it was a civilian hilt cut for a kashira,plain iron fuchi and signed tsuba (I'll try to take a photo). nagasa; 68.2 cms motohaba; 3 cms sakihaba; 2 cms nakago;21.2 cms Tall shakudo habaki; 3.3 cms hamon; medium suguha charles