ckaiserca

On 3/29/2024 at 1:21 PM, Jacob Rudnicki said:

The geometry of this blade is terrible. The rippled appearance is all wrong.

The shinogi-ji should be a precise line between the shinogi and the hira-ji.

44 minutes ago, Jacob Rudnicki said:

ehhhh, ok Collin:) I respect your opinion but I have seen enough of Japanese swords to know which is fake:)

Jacob,

The photos that you have provided show all of the hallmarks of a bad Chinese fake:

The tsukaito on the hilt does not alternate as it would on a real Japanese item.

The Seppa that is shown covers the kogiana of the Tsuba making it useless (Tachi do not have kogai or kozuka anyway)

The Kissaki of the blade is the wrong shape

The habaki would not have a serial number on it

The hamon appears to be acid etched

Overall, the craftmanship is poor. The kashira that you show is far too round. A tsuka would not be that shape.

The "Mei" is meaningless (and when you post pictures of a nakago, you should post them with the point of the blade upwards. your photos are upside down. If you know anything about Japanese swords, you would know this)

You might get more help if you post this topic in the "Military Swords of Japan" section. Perhaps one of the moderators could move it there...

15 hours ago, k morita said:

The Fuchi signature says:
right: Yoshiaki(嘉章)   
left: Masanaga (雅永)　

Thank you! 

Is it possible to translate this mei, or do I need to take a better photograph?

Thanks!

The bird is a Chinese phoenix. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fenghuang

Detailed pictures of such a koshirae can be found here: https://www.aoijapan.com/tachi-koshirae/

Fortunately, getting the swords out of Japan is easier than getting them into the country.

I would love to own a print like that. What a great subject.

46 minutes ago, cnk1 said:

Good evening,

 

first of all let me tell you that I am really happy to join the forum !

 

We are happy to have you here. Welcome Clement!

5 hours ago, Hutch said:

I would love to know when the next meet up is once that information is available?

Kevin,

The meeting schedule for the remainder of 2024 is as follows:

Saturday, February 03 2024 12:00 PM-4:00 PM

Saturday, April 06 2024 12:00 PM-4:00 PM  

Saturday, June 08 2024 12:00 PM-400 PM

Saturday, September 07 2024 12:00 PM-4:00 PM

Saturday, November 09 2024 12:00 PM-4:00 PM

JCCC Token Kai

I can’t attend the February 3 meeting either due to a commitment at work, but will be at the other meetings. I look forward to meeting you at a future meeting. 

Hi Kevin,

Toronto has a great sword group (JCCC Token Kai)  that meets at the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre. There are lots of very knowledgeable people who come to the meetings. The next meeting is on Saturday February 3. The meeting will start at 1:00 pm, but people arrive for some pre-meeting socializing and show and tell at around noon. Visitors are always welcome. If you want to join as a formal member, the cost is $20.00 per year for the club, plus $30.00 to become a member of the JCCC. The knowledge that is available at a single meeting is more than worth the cost of membership.

That would be an excellent bag for the 100 Million Dollar Tachi.

They have certainly raised enough money to make a very impressive koshirae. 36 million yen could buy several Juyo swords.

7 hours ago, Mark S. said:

As stated, always be cautious with old papers, but let item stand for itself.  I have a Bizen Osafune ju Yokoyama Sukekane wakizashi dated “a day in February 1862” that has a 1961 NBTHK Kicho Hozon (white paper) and just received NTHK-NPO paper in 2023.  I would consider old papers a ‘starting point’ for research to confirm the blade and/or mei matches the claim.  

I have a mumei katana that had two different white papers, one from 1960 that attributes it to Shitahara, and one from 1975 that attributes it to Fujishima. I submitted the blade for Shinsa in 2021, and it papered as Hozon attributed to Mino Senjuin. Clear as mud.

Without addressing the blade itself, the wrapping of the tsuka is wrong. The areas where the wraps cross over should always alternate. The ones on your sword are all laid in the same direction.

I can't say I've ever seen so many mekugi-ana before.  And the size of them seems unusual. 

The only return on "Muroboku-Cho" on a Google search is a reference to the book by Clive Sinclair you mentioned in your post. That is fairly telling.

The knowledge that can be tapped on this site makes the Gold status a bargain. I am happy to be able to contribute. 

The number one tip-off before I even saw the blade was the tsuka-ito. The wrap pattern on a proper tsuka-ito always alternates. This one is always wrapped in the same direction. The number two tip-off is the serial number on the habaki and the "kanji" on the blade itself. The number three tip-off is the super prominent grain pattern on the blade. The number four tip-off is the shape of the kissaki (point of the blade).

It is difficult to tell from the photos, but does the discolouration on the blade appear to be rust when you view it in person or does it seem to be something else that is on the blade? I think that the blade might have been treated with something like Cosmoline.

Photos are not accessible without some kind of access based on our email addresses.

What a stunning set! Thanks for sharing. 

2 hours ago, DTM72 said:

Lastly, please understand that IF you buy a Nihonto in Japan, you cannot just pay for it, walk out of the store and come home with it.

Each sword has a torokusho (registration card) filed with the local Prefectural Education Board. If change in ownership is to occur, (you buy it) the seller sends the proper transfer of ownership paperwork and the torokusho to the Education Board. The board reviews the information (2-3 weeks) and issues an export license to the seller. Only then can the seller ship to the USA or allow you to go straight to the airport with it.

 

Wishing you all the best!

The export permit took slightly more than 4 weeks on my last sword purchase. YMMV

Riding Crop?

Running it through Google Translate does translate the smaller text in the middle towards the top as 7th Infantry Regiment. The text on the right might say Congratulations Ken Sano (a proper name?).