Surfson

Actually Adam, I think I used it in the way that Nakahara uses it and Grey Doffin explained in the discussion that you suggested that I search for. I think that both meanings are acceptable.

I think that many of us probably started with a first sword that served as the motivation to buy the books and read. I knew nothing about nihonto when I bought my first. If you find something that is very appealing and you think that it is priced such that you can resell it without a loss, I would say why not. Be sure that it doesn't have any "fatal" flaws however.

It has been shortened by roughly the length between the two holes in the tang. Despite the lack of hamachi, it still has considerable fumbari, so yes, it is quite tired, as the thin carvings indicate. It was once a nice signed and dated muromachi bizen blade. The mei is obscured by rust pitting. It appears that the kissaki has been reshaped as well, and I would be concerned about the condition of the boshi.

Can't read the first kanji, but looks like Sadakuni to me.

Has topped $500. This is amazing to somebody who remembers when they went for $90 all day long. Geez, I have five or six copies - it's a good retirement savings plan!

A katana in full mounts and NBTHK tokubetsu hozon papers generally can't be found in the price range you name. You will have more luck finding a nice fully mounted blade with hozon papers however.

I am racking my brain to remember the name of this type of inlay. The gist of it is that the first word means garbage (gomi) and the second means inlay (zogan or?). Going back 20 years here, but it is gomi..... something.

I mean it looks a bit like Goto Hiromasa. The Go is quite like the Go from the kodogu artists. The To is a little bet different from the classical. Have a great holiday! Cheers, Bob

Is it possibly a stylized Goto?

Just guessing Minamoto Masayoshi.

Looks to me like Bishu Yoshisada followed immediately by a date. Seems odd, in that the date and mei are usually on different sides of the nakago.

Great story Peter. I will share my recent once in a lifetime sword collector story. I recently bought an entire collection from a man whose father had traveled around the whole country as a motel buyer in the 60s and 70s. His son claims that he was the originator of the full page ad in the local newspaper along with setting up shop in a local hotel or motel. He was mostly interested in jewelry, coins etc., but did pick up militaria and developed a liking for Japanese swords and therefore hung on to all of them that he found. Although he apparently was not too knowledgeable about Japanese swords, he had a great eye and I was able to pick up over a dozen swords, half of which are really wonderful and completely worthy of sending to Japan for restorations. Cheers, Bob

Says "ichiban" on the back. Is this made for the tourist trade?

Thanks for the teaching point Chris! That is a beautiful blade - do you have a photo of the entire shape and tang?

Shape of the tang has a distinct Bizen feel to me and there are many listed that are nijimei.

Looks like Naganori to me. B

Here's a link to a "used" one that went for 15K. http://moderntosho.com/OnoIai/Onoiai.htm

It's Osaka Shinto - see the yakidashi as a classic feature

Looks like Kazusa no Kami Shigeyasu to me. Worked in Settsu 1661

Thanks again Chris. I have always worked under the understanding that the official imperial kiku was exactly 16 petals and could not be used by others without the permission of the emperor. I'm sure there is some meaning to the 9 petal kiku, but will have to hit the books and see if I can dig anything up. Cheers, Bob

Thanks for the information Chris. As to the mon, I have a couple of swords with a 16 petal royal chrysanthemum, with or without an ichi, and a friend has a Hisamichi with the chrysantemum on a branch. What seems unusual is a 9 petal chrysanthemum. Does anybody know the significance of this variation? Is it not bestowed by the emperor?

Also, can anybody tell us about the nine petal kiku mon and the ichi? I had not seen this before I came across this sword.

Will polishers typically get an opinion on the mei from the NBTHK before polishing a blade? If not, does it make any sense to attempt to get NTHK papers before sending a blade to Japan? To me, the worst case scenario, short of a hagire or loss of the blade, would be to have it put in a shirasaya, with a new habaki and polish, and then have it fail to get papers. This question is to anybody, not just Chris, though I would value Chris' opinion as well.

Hi All. Recently got this blade. Just under 28", ubu and very healthy, though it has been worked on with steel wool, so hada is not visible (although it appears to have a toran ba hamon befitting the professional grandson of Tsuda Sukehiro). Sorry for just posting the nakago, but the question is, based on the above, would you send this one to Japan for restoration? The mei is Shimada Kojuro Sukemune, with a kiku and ichi, and appears to be the nidai. It looks good to me, but it never hurts to get other opinions. These days, it's an expensive decision and I hoped that the knowledgeable members of the NMB might let me know what they would do. Cheers, Surf

Am I correct that the cutting test has a Meiji date? It appears to be on the nakago mune (if this is a term). Did they still do cutting tests that late after sword wearing was illegal?