drac2k

Better pictures. I hope this helps.

Bruce, was that a request for me or Marcin?

Well, almost rescued.The individual that sold me this sword proudly advised me that his father had etched the blade some years ago with vinegar;on top of that, it looked like he had run the blade through an electric knife sharpener.The saya, which had probably been covered in leather, had been garishly repainted;I am thinking that I may sand it down to plain wood, oil it and leave it unpainted. Since the sword was in such a bad state, I did something almost as unforgivable; I took some 2500 grit emery cloth and I removed the dark stain, the rust and the electric knife sharpening lines.I took a fine German metal cleaning paste and removed all of the grime, The tang was beautifully signed(I guess he didn't get around to fixing that); A friend translated it for me, "Hokai, Province JU, resident of Kanayama.Katsumasa, Saku Kore.Dated November 1944. So now I have another example of a WW2 Army Officer's katana. My friend couldn't find any other examples of this sword smith and I was wondering if anyone could give me any information on him? Thanks

This is what I believe to be a WW2 Japanese Fighting Knife.It is made from the end of a M1866 Chassepot bayonet, which with the 1940 invasion of French Indo-China by Japan, it would seem reasonable that there would have been ample supplies of these issued to Colonial Troops.Can someone confirm that the Kanji is Japanese and possibly trandlate it?

Thanks !

Thank you for your reply!So can I assume from your answer that it is in fact a WW2 Katana.; are the fittings and the respective blade naval?

This is what I believe to be a late war Japanese Katana with an incorrect handle,It has the 3 piece Japanese Naval Tsuba that appears to match the sword;all of them look to be numbered "80." I think that the mismatched handle is for the army katana. I could be completely wrong and this could possibly be a fake imitation Any help would be appreciated.

Thank you very much!

The wakizashi is just over 19 inches long and it does have a hamon even though the pictures don't show it.

Thanks for the additional insight.

I'll stay on second base and let the next guy at bat have a go at it ,lol .At present I'll enjoy it for what it is(as stated), and what it could be.

Well, this is the final chapter of this sword, maybe. A friend of mine(even though I met him only once, I trust him wth my Japanese swords, so I guess that constitutes a friend), carried my sword to the "NTHK 2024 EAST COAST SHOW," and had it papered . Here are the results below. This should be the end of the story, however, my friend told me that several knowledgeable sword collectors told him that if the sword was put into proper polish , it might turn out to be an older blade..........well, this is where I'm getting off on this train, but this certainly illustrates how complicated Japanese sword identification is!

No apologies are necessary; I always appreciate the opinions of people who comment on my swords. I don't take the observations on my items personally, especially since I'm a novice, I'm surprised when I don't screw up.lol. Thanks for clearing that up for me.

Thank you for your comments. So are you saying that the signature may be a forgery? Please understand that I take no offense if you are stating that to be your belief and if it is, I would really like to know. Since I didn't purchase the sword to be a Tomoshige, if it is not, no harm has been done.