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Thank you! I'm happy to have found it I think you're right on the money about the Tsuba. Other than a tiny hint of gold, it doesn't match the rest of the koshirae that well. I didn't even think about the slots for kozuka and kogai, but that makes even more sense now Maybe it had a matching kiri-mon tsuba that someone sold individually. Fun to imagine what it could have been. I enjoy it and it's fukurin nonetheless!

Hi Dale, thanks for that info about the saya, that's interesting and great to know There is 1 seppa above the tsuba and under the habiki. The one in the photos below seems to fit properly, whereas the two underneath are several millimeters larger than they need to be; almost like they belong to a sword with a larger motohaba. not sure if that's normal or not

since I accidentally bumped my thread. here's a recent attempt to capture more activity

Thanks everyone for your help, and discussion about my new blade and Koshirae. Especially helping me identify the Menuki. So I figured I'd share a post featuring the whole set of Koshirae This O-Wakizashi is in a World War Two saya I think. The kashira and fuchi feature gold kiri-mon, on shakudo nanako background. A Ford Hallam video was shared with me about shakudo nanako, and it was really fascinating and informative The Menuki are both shiode and kura; which are tiedowns on a horse saddle. The nunome zogan Tsuba features a copper fukurin, and depicts a dragon in the clouds and some geometric lines - unfortunately its very hard to see and photograph because of poor condition, but it looks like there was once some gold in the clouds. The Habiki is really interesting to me, and seems to mimic the bo-hi of the blade. The whole set is mumei, like the blade. The blade post can be found at this link: https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/45168-wakizashi-in-koshirae-discussion-and-check-my-notes/ I would love more opinions about the blade hada and possible age Thanks again, I've learned a lot! *More photos incoming in the comment's*

Wow, what an amazing coincidence. Those are a really beautiful set. Thank you, and everyone, again. I was able to learn so much from you and this koshirae I knew I liked it, I had no idea how fancy it really was. This is all very exciting

Thank you! I really like it too Maybe in a while, after some photography practice, I will post post photos of the whole koshirae set

Thank you! those photos help me see a lot more The Bo-hi is actually on both sides, and extends about halfway up the blade. The horimono line (not sure if thats the right term) extends past the bohi a few inches. One one side that "horimono line" under the bohi, looks to have been polished down a bit. Suggesting, to me, that this blade has seen a polish at lease once. Please correct me if any of my statements or assumptions are incorrect here

Oh, man, If it were Nanbokucho I would literally jump for joy! I know thats just a guess, and short of shinsa, I might never know - but that would be so exciting to me! Way to give me some hope, haha I picked this up for $200 dollars (USD), and I justified that because I really enjoy the Koshirae. My initial thought was Shinto, but that Nakago looks old to me. So if the blade is interesting at all, I consider this a big win Thanks for your input, its much appreciated. Looking forward to researching more about Yamashiro school features -Sam Edit: If any other pictures would help, let me know and I will do my best

Hello all, I have shared images of this sword on other groups/forums, so apologies if you've seen it and discussed with me before. I'm a novice and a beginner, so I'm trying to hone my ability to identify features. Also practicing photography and measuring - which is more challenging than I could have ever imagined! I found this o-wakizashi at a local Militaria sale for a price I couldn't refuse. What drew me to the purchase was the koshirae in particular, which features kiri-mon fuchi/kashira, ww2 saya, horse harness menuki, a really interesting habiki, and nunome zogan tsuba with fukurin. It's Shinogi Zukuri, mumei, torisori, and I think Ubu. Hamon is Suguha throughout, it features an iorimune, and ichimonji nakagojiri. I think the Hada is itame, but some swirls in the hamon make me think maybe mokume? Would love to hear opinions on this I think the blade has issues in the Kissaki. Which I know is about the worst place for issues to appear - especially because it makes it hard to study that area... Would love to hear any and all opinions and observations. Im particularly interested in how old it might be, I was thinking maybe mid-edo after discussing with some other collectors, but i'm a novice and beginner and it's just a guess Nagasa - 56.6 cm Sori - 1 cm Kasane - 6.5 mm Motohaba - 2.6 cm Sakihaba - 1.6 cm Kissaki - 2.6 cm Nakago Length - 14.7cm . . *posting additional comments for more images* .

Sounds like an amazing piece. The craftmanship that goes into items like that is truly incredible and impressive Which is exactly why I'm here! Seeing collections and reading these forums has helped a lot in my studies

Thank you Dale, and Piers so much. That is spot-on exactly what it is! This is great for my notes Cheers, and thanks again! Ya'll on this forum never cease to amaze me

That Daikon looks awfully close! Especially how the end of the 'leafs' are different. One side theres three "tendrils", the other side there are two Thank you for the input. Here's a couple more photos, but I'm not sure if they will reveal anything new. Thanks again!

some photos of koshirae

Hello, it's been a while since I've posted. I recently acquired a wakizashi in koshirae with kiri-mon fuchi and kashira. And a WW2 saya I think I can't for the life of me determine what the menuki is depicting. It looks like someone in the past had the same issue, because the Ito is a little frayed and loose around them. I can move it a little, but fear damaging a koshirae set that I enjoy I am a beginner and novice, but have been reading and studying. I am finally grasping some of the vocabulary, and getting better at identifying features Can you tell what the Menuki is for me?

I will be attending, It will be the first ever Nihonto show that I've been to. Really looking forward to seeing more swords in person

Glad to see ya over here on NMB. Welcome, and thank you for sharing such an interesting sword

Posted before with no luck. Can anyone translate this script on my saya? For reference it is on an early Shinto blade. The writing is under the decorative cap on the end of my saya. I know it’s probably not super interesting, but that doesn’t stop my curious brain, haha. Thank you in advance Cheers,

Thank you again for the advice and kind words. I hope to have it polished and papered after I save a little money. I will definitely post back here whenever I have that done. (Might be a little while). I responded to Surfsans question about the expert I sent my sword to in a private message. I didn’t want to post his name publicly, just incase he didn’t want me to. If you’re curious, id be happy to answer any questions about that in a private message. Thanks again everyone! cheers!

I plan to save up the money to have it polished. It's sentimental value makes it well worth it to me. Having it in such bad shape drives me crazy, and I've spent so much time trying to observe the Boshi and just cant quite see it. Thanks again! I appreciate the kind words about my sword

Thank you Steve. The expert told me that too, I think his comment was a nice way of saying “this is no Masamune” or sword made by a known masterful smith, haha. It’s certainly a piece of fine art to me! and I’m beyond excited to have a real Nihonto as a springboard into studying. I’m also a history buff, so it’s all just very fascinating and exciting to learn about. I hope to respect it and preserve it the best I can. Thanks again for your input; following the threads on this forum has been a wealth of information, and full of amazing swords to look at. I hope to add to my collection someday