Mark C

Hi All, After a couple of hours on the net I have came up with the following: The face is Shoki, the Demon Queller. Shoki is usually depicted brandishing a large sword and hunting down Oni. What I cant work out is what he is hunting or hiding from, is it Oni or a lion Also is that a moon or sun set on the other side of the tsuba Am I getting close :? Many thanks regards mark

Hi All, I have just picked up this iron aori gata tsuba. the face is, I think copper and the long strip I think is copper as well. As I know very little about tsuba, a couple of questions if I may. 1 - what are the scenes on both sides depicting? 2 - any ideas of age and maker? many thanks all regards Mark

Hi all, Thanks for your help. Certainly lots of different angles of attack :D I will investigate all the options and if they draw a blank then I think I will put it away until the Shinsa team visit the UK again. Again many thanks Regards Mark

its almost last orders at the bar here. a quick picture of part of the blade. Nagasa = 20 11/16 sori = 10mm, koshi sori regards mark

Very tricky, I was thinking this suke 助 Time for another beer I think Regards Mark

hi all, any help on this mei would be greatly appreciated. with a large amount of imagination, :? i think the first kanji could be "Suke" and the second could be "Mune" Many thanks regards mark

Hi All, I recently brought a wak with this little sukashi Tsuba on it. 2 3/8 wide 2 5/8 high Just over 3/16 thick. Can I ask for some help in dating this Tsuba Many thanks in advance Mark C

Hi All, Many thanks for all your help, it would seem nothing in this game is straight forward :D Yoshii, I have tried your comment and the results are below, its my first time, so be gentle. Nagasa- 2 Shaku 4 sun 1 bu Sori-4 bu 6 rin Nakago length-9 sun 5 bu 9 rin Nakagojiri-haagari Kurijiri Yasurime- possibly sujikai width at machi- 1 sun 2 rin width at yokota-7 bu 2 rin Again thanks for all the help everyone Regards Mark

Hi All, Firstly, Happy new year to everyone. I have recently picked up a katana, details below: Nagasa-28 3/4 Sori-14mm, slightly Koshi by 3/4" Nakago length-200mm Nakagojiri-haagari Kurijiri Yasurime- possibly sujikai width at machi-31mm width at yokota-22mm Jihada-impossible to tell due to state of polish I am having trouble working out the exact description of the hamon. Is it Gunome, Gunome choji, midare ????? All I have done is a little fingerstone work to achieve the picture. Any help greatly appreciated Many thanks Mark

Hi All, My latest aquisition. Width = 68mm height = 73mm thickness = 5mm weight = 4oz Mokko gata in shape but thats all I know. Any help on age and mei (mission impossible I fear) would be great. Many thanks Regards Mark

Thanks Ted, I should have guessed it wouldn't be that easy :D Regards Mark

Hi All, Reading various books and looking at details of different schools etc and it has raised one question. Is there any measurement references for the amount of Sori on blades For example: if a blade has a Shallow Sori, what would the measurement parameters be Any help greatly appreciated. Many thanks Mark C

Hi fj, There is some pictures in Fuller and Gregorys two books, 'Military swords of Japan 1868-1945' and 'Japanese Military and Civil Swords and Dirks' They are the same pictures as Bungo diacribes. Hope this helps Regards Mark

Hi Curran, I will do that as I have a few items now for each box. As yourself and Rich have said, this is probably late edo period and that means at least a hundred years old and I do like the look of it otherwise I wouldn't have bought it. Knowing not a lot about Tsuba, I will have to look up Kaneie Many thanks Regards mark

Hi Rich and all, Thanks for that. I will put this Tsuba in the Gimei/copy box that seems to be getting bigger :lol: Again many thanks mark

Hi all, Just picked up this little tsuba at a local arms fair and would like a little help in identifying it. Width= 2 9/16 Height=2 3/4 I have a small collection starting with 6 tsuba in total, Maybe its about time I started to get some referance material Anyway, any help greatly appreciated many thanks mark

Hi all, Thanks Stephen, why didn't I think of that. I have done an comparison example of both side by side and it seems to be close to both but looks more like Hisa . Whats the opinions on gimei or not? many thanks mark

Hi Stephen, I'm not sure about the gimei bit as it would seem that the last couple of things I have aquired seem to be I have no books on fittings etc, maybe I should invest in a few. At least I got one kanji right and didn't know about kozuka and nagako mei being different. Many thanks Mark

Hi all, I have placed the kodzuka on the old board a while back and it now resides in the ever increasing box marked Gimei :lol: I thought I would put the blade from the same kodzuka up for help/opinions. I think I have translated the second and third kanji, Kane and Kore. I can't seem to get the first one. Any help/opinions greatly appreciated. Many thanks Mark

Many thanks Rich. Regards Mark C

Hi all, I have just aquired a new Tsuba that was on a wakazashi that I found in a local sale and wondered if I could ask for some help with it as I know next to nothing about Tsuba . width is 2 9/16 (66mm) Height is 2 3/4 (70mm) Thickness is just under 3/16 (4mm) Any help, greatly appreciated. Many thanks Mark C