Bazza

Well, hooray for a moment of levity (="if Ford can do it so can I") Why did the frog cross the road??? Barry Thomas.

G'day Jim, I'll stick my neck out and say nice-looking sword. The hamon shows ashi ('feet') and a tendency to saka ('sloping' or 'leaning' and a good nioi (fine crystal structure). The nakago is nicely shaped, filed and signed. I'd like to see better pics (i.e., higher resolution) of the hamon in various parts of the blade (point, midway and at the machi) as well as a better shot of the tang. I'd also like to see more effort at cropping out the useless information in a picture and to rotate the tangs to vertical so I don't have to crack my ancient neck vertebrae looking at it sideways!!! Jim, for closeups of the tang try putting the sword running left-right and use the flash. Take a number of pics straight above, higher and lower (as in north-south not up-down) to get a pic without reflected glare from from the flash. I've attached a sample of what I mean. This image is 100kbyte jpeg which I THINK will fit here. I've also rotated and cropped your image Jim and played with the brightness and contrast a.w.a. the colour balance and attached it here as well so you can see what is possible. Imagine, blokes, how much better your images will look if you pay more attention to their presentation, which is more likely to attract the desired help from already busy people... Best regards, Barry Thomas.

Aaaaaagh, Jeez, 'nuther birfday (known in some quarters as a 'barfday'. I've just sent good birthday wishes to my two brothers and as they live a fair way apart I sent them the same card each. It went like this "For your Birthday I've sent you a Pole Dancer" (open card) "His name's Ivan and he's from WARSAW...". And what a pretty sight he was - NOT. So Brian, there's my birthday card for you. HAPPY BIRTHDAY YOU GETTINK OLDER GEEZER. Times a'passing, swords are a'waiting... Come to Oz and we'll show you a few. Bestests, BaZZa. aka Barry Thomas amongst many other things.

Mark, Can we see pictures of the koshirae please??? Regards, Barry Thomas.

I certainly agree with this statement. I notice that one of these mon (lhs) is on the kabutogane of a shingunto and feel obliged to pass on some information I was given many years ago - true or not, I don't know. I have a shingunto koshirae with a nidai Hizen Tadahiro katana in it and one of the menuki has a mon on it. I searched such resources as I had at the time and couldn't find it so sent an image to Albert Yamanaka in Japan. He couldn't find it either and commented "Many WW2 officers who weren't of samurai descent "made up" mon to give the impression that were from a samurai line". Comments??? Regards, Barry Thomas.

FWIW this humble observer concurs with the above two gentlemen - my sediments exactly... Regards, Barry Thomas.

Gabriel, Might I suggest that the hamon is, in fact, nowhere to be seen. What you call the hamon is simply the outline of the yakiba, and what appears to be the hamon is (as you know) the hadori. The hamon (as we understand it) is invisible in this lighting. The blade needs to be turned slightly in the light to "lose" the hadori and light up the nioi/nie of the hamon proper. This is (IN GENERAL) my principal objection to hadori as a style of polish. I say "in general" because I have read where some blades require hadori to present them at their best, and it is this facet of kantei that I do not yet fully understand (after 45 years!!!). All I know is from empirical evidence - I have seen many hadori polishes, yet those sashikomi polishes on my swords returning from Japan please my eye - and those of my fellow collectors here in Victoria - far more than any hadori polish I have seen over the years. A visiting polisher once said to me that "it doesn't have to be like that", but I have yet to see the proof of the pudding. Perhaps when Andrew Ickeringill comes home from Japan I might at least become wiser... Regards, Barry Thomas.

Guido, I had my tongue firmly in my cheek, of course!! However, I do the same thing around my family, because whenever I come out with knowledge I get beaten up!! So I'm trying to maintain a Zen silence as a survival technique!!! That way I can continue to collect quietly... Regards, Barry Thomas.

Guido, I was surprised to see your question - mainly because I thought you knew "everything"... Even more surprised that I might be able to contribute to this thread!! For years I have known the theme as "Buddhist Wheels in Water" so I popped these keywords into google (no quotes) [ buddhist wheels water ] and got a stack of hits - lotsa reading there me hearties. Then I searched within those results with [ Japan ] with about 400,000 hits. I would hope there is a simpler answer to Guido's question, but I wonder if this would suffice as a start: ----------------------------------------- The wheel is an emblem of Buddhism, a religion introduced to Japan from China in the 6th century. Chinese classics like the Lao Tzu mention that the revolving wheel was considered a direct symbol of the universe. Originating in India, the rinbō or hōrin (Sanskrit: dharmachakra), the Wheel of Buddhist Law, is adopted from the Middle Eastern chariot wheel and represents the completeness of Buddhist doctrine, while its eight spokes signify Buddhism's "eightfold path" to enlightenment. A rinbō appears in the exhibition on a kind of altar from a temple in Japan that similarly depicts crossed vajras, Buddhist emblems that are considered to represent the Wheel of Buddhist Law as well. ------------------------------------------ ( http://www.morikami.org/index.php?src=g ... y=Exhibits ) Of course, water is not mentioned here, but the above would seem a fruitful line of enquiry for more fruitful discoveries - perhaps someone already knows "The Answer", in this case most certainly not 42... Regards, Barry Thomas.

I agree. The first thing I noticed was the extreme "chippy" style of the kanji (meibun???) and I immediately said to myself "GUNTO". Until Grey raised the ugly word I was simply going to ask if this "chippy" style was around in Koto times. I don't believe so. I too have seen other swords with a "rust spot" right where an arsenal stamp would be... Regards, Barry Thomas.

MATE, I DON'T THINK I'LL SEND YOU THAT BOTTLE OF WINE AFTER ALL... Regards, Barry Thomas.

Grey, Yes, the sword has to be seen in hand. I honestly cannot comprehend how a "perfectly hardened kissaki" can bend at the tip without breaking. I understand you've seen it with your own eyes Grey, but I wonder about the "hardness" of the yakiba and battle-worthiness in such a case. However, always something to learn and I've tucked this nugget of yours away in my memory banks for a future encounter. I have myself seen only one blade that had the tip bent AND BROKEN - it was hanging on by the kawagane and would probably have broken completely off if straightened. Frankly, I would be very suss about any sword with a bent tip and a hamon. Of course, it would depend on everything else. On Koto being crack resistant, a Japanese collector visiting one day commented that Koto were good because if it bent on the battlefield you just straightened it over your thigh and continued on, and demonstrated pantomime-style as he described this process. Best regards, Barry Thomas.

Yes - here is my reply to this question from thread viewtopic.php?f=50&t=5959&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=30: Bruno, My opinion is that it is fatal because it should have broken in the first place if it was correctly hardened. The bend as opposed to a break means the steel is soft, which means it isn't correctly hardened or has been damaged by excessive heat that has drawn the hardening. Either way definitely a sword to be avoided like the plague IMHO (In My Humble Opinion) Regards, Barry Thomas.

Bruno, My opinion is that it is fatal because it should have broken in the first place if it was correctly hardened. The bend as opposed to a break means the steel is soft, which means it isn't correctly hardened or has been damaged by excessive heat that has drawn the hardening. Either way definitely a sword to be avoided like the plague IMHO (In My Humble Opinion) Regards, Barry Thomas.

Curran, Yes, coming later. I'll have to take them. The koshirae has some very interesting features, one of which a visiting Japanese togishi said he had never seen before. As a teaser, the same is lacquered gold and the remaining menuki is a swastika. This appears to be very much a custom-ordered sword from the blade to the koshirae. Thanks too for your opinion Rich. As a result of this little exercise I have looked even more closely at this tsuba and have discovered a couple more things about it. I'll try and photograph them with my macro lens, but it could take a few days before I'm back. Regards, Barry Thomas

Well, it is with some trepidation that I venture here with an iron tsuba that may be in the category of (quote Guido) "the junk, fakes and mediocrity that is posted here so often"!!! I've had this for nearly thirty years and have always been somewhat indifferent to it alongside its Goto and Ishiguro shakudo nanako cupboard-fellows. It is, however, original to a handachi with original koshirae and katana dated 1862 by SENDAI HYAKURYUSHI NAGASHIGE (Hawley Brown Book NAG 106?). It fits the characteristics noted - granulated appearance, sukidashi bori, thin?, naive and not signed. The two pictures below show the front and back of the tsuba, dimensions 83mm high x 76mm wide x 3.5mm thick at seppa dai and 4.0mm across mimi. The last two pictures are of some marks on the mimi that could be corrosion pits, but I'm of the opinion that they are deliberately placed. An imitation of Nature's worm holes??? The tsuba has a muted ring when struck (not sonorous, like a bell) and shows evidence of forging with a fold line evident on both sides of the nakago ana and a small fold evident on the mimi. I don't for a moment think this is a first period Kamakura Bori tsuba. I've always thought it was Edo period and was obviously chosen carefully by the owner of the (made to order) Nagashige katana, which by the way is a long, slim blade quite unlike any I've seen before. I've wondered if it was a Fukkoto interpretation of a Heian tachi!!! Anyway, I'd appreciate any opinions on this tsuba that appears to conform to the characteristics of a Kamakura Bori tsuba. Best regards, Barry Thomas.

OOOOOPS - I'm sorry, but in general the designations of these swords go right over my head, my gaze being focussed a little further back in time... I hope somebody gave you a good answer for your REAL question instead of my rambling... Best regards, Barry T.

G'day All, This is a continuation of a discussion at viewtopic.php?f=50&t=5959 The discussion was about ishime lacquer on gunto scabbards. I thought of a sword I catalogued for an auction here in Oz about 18 months ago. I'd love to have bought it but was financially committed elswhere, so it was bought by someone else. I hope they treasure it because I loved it. The sword is the most unusual Shingunto koshirae I have seen and recorded it for posterity. Anyway, here is my catalog description with the photos following. I hope it is all self-explanatory. Oh, the mei is INSHU JU KANEYUKI. There is no such recorded smith in Hawley or in 18 other books a friend of mine searched, and NO oshigata of any Inshu smith. However, Hawley records smiths in INSHU (Inaba Kuni) from the Kamakura period right to Meiji. I have a spreadsheet of all the smiths in Hawley (I'll try and upload it). It would appear that the Inaba smiths are "backwater" artisans, although a Kamakura period smith is indicated as Juyo. Best regards, Barry Thomas. ------------------------------------ KATANA: Shinogi tsukuri, (ridge line & yokote); 69.9cm blade, tang 21.5cm, curvature 2.0cm, thickness 0.70cm; in original Japanese polish (some rust pitting & cleaning at point); itame hada (irregular grain pattern); notare hamon (“long wave” undulating temper pattern) with peaks resembling Mount Fuji; tang in g. orig cond, nice patina & filemarks, incised in nicely cut characters IN SHU JU KANEYUKI. A sound Shinshinto blade ca 1820. Koshirae: WW2 Japanese Army shingunto, the whole complete & g. cond; exc orig, clean brown silk binding to handle; family crest on kabutogane (end handle fitting); g. rayskin (slight cracking); brown silk rank tassel present but badly frayed & worn attached to scabbard hanger (remnant of original silk hanger still in kabutogane). This sword has 3 very unusual features (i) scabbard is finished in true urushi (lacquer) in russet-brown (slight scuffing & cracking); (ii) scabbard mouth has an additional protective collar to keep out dust & moisture; (iii) on each side of the handle between rayskin & wood core is a thin strip of silver or nickel-plated iron. Clearly this unique sword was of special significance to its wartime owner. $2500 - 3000 ------------------------------------

OK All, The image I particularly wanted to show for Bruno as to quality urushi (traditional lacquer) finish on shingunto swords is this one: The rest of the sword is off-topic and I'll post those on the Board index » Nihonto Discussion list under a new thread UNUSUAL SHINGUNTO. George, I also have a damaged Shingunto lacquered saya that is damaged and shows the cloth underneath the lacquer. Bruno, all this is to say that your "green" scabbards look to be traditional lacquer and should be preserved as such. Best regards, Barry Thomas.

Dear Old George - make sure you have company if you venture out into the dark!!! Your comments encourage me to put here for your attention an extremely interesting Shingunto with ishime urushi saya that I catalogued for an auction here some 18 months ago. I would love to have bought it, but I had already savagely abused my credit card on sundry other Edo-malia!! However, the night is late and I'm knackered (Aussie expression for "tired beyond belief"), so I'll attend to it tomorrow - watch this space. Best regards, Barry Thomas.

G'day All, Ahhh, the first mention of "ishime". Firstly, most of the blades (sample of about 6 swords) I have seen in these mounts have been better class gendaito, and if not "good" then named smiths "in the books" and not poorer factory productions. Secondly, this seems a good time and place to ask my question about the green scabbards of "ishime". I have also seen this finish on the more normal Shingunto as well. It appears to me to be genuine urushi, that is to say, real ishime lacquer, the same as on katana of old. In which case, Bruno, I opine that this is a very expensive finish in its day and very traditional. To even think of taking it off amounts to a heinous crime IMHO. I have seen nothing in print about these ishime scabbards and would love to hear the opinions of others. Best regards, Barry Thomas.

Could I be bold enough to say this has a "modern" look?? Perhaps early 20th century??? No analysis here, no books, just a certain "look" about it compared to my "memory bank average" of many years... On the colour difference observed. Discussion here has talked about the complexities of colour calibration in monitors and digital photography. I can only think of white balance vis-a-vis light source???? Best regards, Barry Thomas (Melbourne, Australia)

Dear Brethren, This is a lovely koshirae Ford. Meiji period??? I did a google search using keywords [ baleen buying ] and turned up this very interesting thread: http://www.city-data.com/forum/alaska/3 ... aleen.html So I guess baleen is available if one looks hard enough. I think I might have some pics somewhere of another koshirae - if I find it I'll put it up. Regards, Barry Thomas

Koichi san's image of So Tsutomu compared to the "China" auction sword nakago shows how difficult it is to do yasurime artfully. Regards, Barry Thomas.

Barry H, Off the top of my head - UJI MITSU??? Barry Thomas.