stephan_hiller

Hi, about a year ago I bought a Nobusada with NBTHK Hozon papers from a Japanese dealer (on ebay). Nobusada is a not very well known smiths from the Shimosaka Yasutsugu School but I liked the hamon and sugata of the blade. The blade is very strong/healthy and in quite good condition, although it is an old polish. nagasa: 54,6 cm Sori: 1,0 cm Kitae(Jihada): Itame Hamon: Gunome-Midare Boshi: Komaru Kissaki: Chu kissaki Activity: Nie-deki, Kinsuji, Sunagashi, Utsuri, Chikei Nakago: Ubu Nagako length: 14,5 cm Yasuri-mei: Sujikai/Katte-Sagari Mei: Omote: MUTSU NO KAMI FUJIWARA NOBUSADA (奥之守藤原宣貞) Ura: ECHIZEN JU (越前住) Period: Edo period; Nobusada 1673 – 1688, Enpo (1673-1681) I have gathered quite some information about the Yasutsugu school - so if you are interested please send me a PM. I have added some pictures of my blade but I have some more - so if you are intersted just let me know. Stephan

Stephen, I think you are correct - it is the Gendai Tadayoshi. I only read "Tadayoshi" and had a quick view at the pictures as I knew that Mike was also selling several "Hizen Tadayoshi" recently and they were definitely Gimei. Stephan

Hi Steve, it is almost 100% certain that the blade is gimei. The Tadayoshi school was one of the most faked school as they made excellent swords and there are much more out there than could ever have been produced. Mike (Komonjo) knows his swords well and although he has some nice pieces up for auction he does not guarantee for the signature and you get exactly from him what you can see in the pictures. I bought from Mike some time ago and was happy with what I got - I think he is an honest guy and if you ask for his opinion whether he thinks the sword is a genuine Tadayoshi you will get an honest response. Stephan

Hi, in Germany an items over 100 years old would also be considered as antique. The problem with customs here is that you usally have no proof which can be read by these guys. Arguing about the rust was not successful. Even with Origami you have no chance as it is in Japanese (which they don't read). The only way would be a professional expertise in German but this would be more expensive (and time consuming to get) than the custom fee you have to pay. I even thought about sending swords to some friends or colleagues who live in other EU countries and where you have to pay less tax. When a sword then is in an EU country you can send it anywhere in the EU without paying VAT or customs. Mmmhh, could be a good business case. Import it into an EU country with low (or no) VAT/custom charges and then forward it to the owner EU internally. I think in most cases the additional shipping fee would be less than what you save. It's a funny world we are living in Stephan

Hi Mark, Luckily none of the blades had any major scratches, nicks or fingerprints which they not already had before shipping. I hope that no customs officer ever will play "Samurai" with my blades I am more angry about the costs and time involved to import a sword to Germany. Stephan

Hi, Here in Germany I experienced that ALL packages with Japanese swords have been opened by customs. More precisely they are opened twice by customes. The first time it is opened in Frankfurt where it arrives (from the US or Japan). The package is there inspected and then forwarded to my local customs here in Hamburg (where I live). I then get a notification that a package has been arrived and I should bring with me an invoice (if not already in the package) and a proof which sum has been paid (e.g. Paypal account statement or a bank account statement when the sword has been paid by bank wire transfer). If they believe the paper account statement and the invoice, then you have to pay customes and VAT and get your package. If they don't believe the sum, you have to login at the customs in your paypal account or bank account to show it to them. If you go to customs with an ebay printout (or some other on-line sales) they even check with ebay or the online shop online if the sum is correct. You think this is paranoid? Then you are probably correct, but due to the high importing fees (19% VAT + 1,5% customs in Germany) people are trying to cheat. Think about a sword easily worth 3.000 Euros and you have to pay over 600.00 Euros on top of that. Just for nothing. Over the last 10 years I think I have imported about 40 swords to Germany and only one tanto was sent to me without having to go to customs. Stephan

Hi Henry, I just registered successfully but it took me some time to get in. Unfortunately the fields are not marked as mandatory and I think some of them should be optional (e.g. don't want to disclose my address - city is okay). The date issue can be avoided by using the calendar function next to the field. I was also not too happy to see my password in clear in the email confirming my registration. This should be left empty in the confirmation email as I am quite sensible with passwords in the clear (even more when provided together with the login link and my user name). I know how easy it is to sniff the network traffic for keywords like "password". Please don't get me wrong. I am happy about your site as it hopefully avoids all these ebay auctions with replica stuff and Ninja swords. Regards, Stephan

Koichi, Many thanks for the quick reply and for the reference link. Stephan

Hi, I just came across this ebay listing where the seller claims that due to the location of the menukis this sword was made for a left handed samurai. I have never heard about it but would not classify it as nonsense either (it could make sense). Can anyone confirm that the location of the menukis eventually indicates whether the original ower was a left or right handed samurai? http://cgi.ebay.com/TAMBA-NO-KAMI-YOSHI ... dZViewItem Stephan

I am 38 and started collecting about 13 years ago with a wakizashi I acquired from an auction house (a real one - not eBay). As it was my first sword I had it completely restored (shirasaya, new habaki, polish) and put a lot of more money into it than it was worth. I still have the sword although it is not my favorite anymore. I have learned a lot from this and also my other swords but would still classify me as a beginner. Being from Germany and with only limited time to travel to sword meetings the Internet is the best place for me to get in touch with other collectors and to see other swords (although seeing them in hand would be far better). Stephan

Hi, I just acquired a wakizashi with Hozon papers and although the blade is signed I was thinking about all the mumei blades I have. I wonder if they would get NBTHK Hozon status if I send them to Shinsa. From the meaning I understand that at least the lower ranks from NBTHK and NTHK mean only "genuine" but do they also say something about the quality of a blade. I also understand that in order to get higher papers (NBTHK TH, Juyo TJ) the quality and workmanship is also considere, but would a mumei blade which is identified as genuine Japanese sword always get a paper? Or does quality for these kind of papers is also a relevant criteria. What are the requirements here for getting hozon papers. Should be blade only in a state where the workmanship of the swordsmith can be recognised? I am just wondering how easy or difficult it would be to get lower papers for mumei blades or for what reason would a mumei blade be rejected? Thanks, Stephan

Hello, many thanks for the translation. I forwarded the translation to my friend who also expresses his thanks for the translation. Kind Regards, Stephan

All, A friend of mine has two Shin Gunto that are signed and one seems to be dated. Would someone of you be so kind to provide me with the translation. Many thanks, Stephan

All, I understand from this discussion and also from some older discussion that the Toroku remains in Japan when the sword is exported. However, I have quite some swords which I got straight from Japan that still had the Toroku attached to the saya. Does that mean that these swords were exported without keeping the standard process of "decommissioning" or is it possible that the sender sends the Toroku legally with the blade? I have read on ebay in some auctions from Japan that the Toroku will be retained when the sword is exported. I now wonder if you get in trouble with the sword when the Japan customs discover a sword for export with the Toroku still attached. Thanks, Stephan

Stephen, I just "raised" it to 51 US$. Hope that's okay for you :-) Cheers, Stephan

Stephen, How much is shipping for the Masamune book to Germany? Thanks, Stephan

Ludolf, Jacques, Many thanks for your reply. I will try to get hold of these references to get more information about the Bungo Takada school and Yukinaga in particular. @Jacques, Thanks for your information. But why do you have concerns about the nakago-jiri? Is is kurijiri. With regard to the boshi it really has no kaeri. I noticed that Nihonto Koza states that boshi with kaeri were most common but also other boshis like hakkake can be found. However, the hamon suguba/suguha is common for Bungo Takada school and yasurime is sujikai which is also in line with other Yukinaga/Bungo Takada swords. I agree with you that my blade seems to be not 100 % typical for this school but I don't assume that someone would make a gimei blade with Bungo Takeda school. They were never prized for their artistical value but more for their practical merits. In terms of the hada, do you think it is not coarse enough? Stephan

I recently acquired a nice wakizashi in good Japanese polish. The wakizashi is signed Fujiwara Yukinaga who was a member of the Bungo Takeda school. In the "The Connisseurs Book of Japanese Swords" from Kokan Nagayama the Bungo schools are covered only very shortly and from the text I understand that the Bungo Takeda school swords are not really much sought-after. However, I am asking for your opinion on the wakizashi and it would be great if someone has some oshigatas of "Fujiwara Yukinaga" so that I may be able to determine which of the "Yukinaga" made my sword. In Hawleys are several smitsh signing this way and they all seem to have worked in the early Shinto period. If someone has more background details about this school than can be found in Nihonto Koza (AFU Translation), Connisseurs Book ..., or Hawleys I would greatly appreciate if you could share this knowledge with me. Stephan

I only wonder why the blade was in the collection for just such a short time. The AOI-Arts appraisal dates from 15th January 2008. Stephan

Guido, Thanks for your suggestion, but you may also know that we Germans are more direct (which is taken sometimes as a bit rude) and state it as is: "No, it's not a Japanese sword - it's junk where you spent your bucks on" :-) Stephan

All, Last week I was contaced by a newbie "collector" here in Germany who just acquired his first Japanese sword. He said that the sword has a signature and I offered him to see if I am able to identify the mei and get more details about the smith. However, when he sent me thepictures I really doubt that we are talking about a real nihonto. For me it rather looks like one of these Chinese fakes. Unfortunately the guy has no internet access and also no digital camera, but from what I see it is probably not "real". The kissaki looks crudely shaped. The mei also looks odd (although I was not able to identify). The hamon/hada on the picture also looks more "fancy" like in the Chinese fakes. The mekugi-ana is also crudely punched/drilled. However, before I want to go back to the guy telling him that he bought some crap, I would like to know also your opinion just to make sure I am not judging it in the wrong way. Many thanks, Stephan

Tom, AFAIK you will not be able to get papers for a showa stamped blade as they are regarded as not traditionally made and are seen as weapons of war by the Japanese government and therefore destroyed when imported into Japan. I think that only star stamped (and some other exotic stamps) are regarded as traditionally made swords with traditional materials (tamahagene) but showa, seki and other arsenal stamped swords are illegal to possess in Japan. For more information about the different stamps during WW2 please go to Rich Steins website. Regards Stephan

Is it possible to buy the exhibition catalogs? I checked the website of the Sano Art Museum but was unable to find a link where to buy the catalog. Stephan

Hi Dirk, I am not from Belgium but from the Germany, but I think the processes in the EU are almost the same for the different countries. Whenever I import a sword from a non-EU country into Germany I am notified by the customs that a package arrived for me and I have to bring various papers to the customs to get the sword handed over. - Passport/ID card - Invoice (or an ebay printout) - any other papers that tell about the age of the blade (if available). The package then is opened at the customs and they inspect the blade and compare it with the printout. You eventually have to proof how much you paid for (e.g. printout of your bank account, displaying the sum). In Germany the customs then check the Internet (if it was purchased on ebay or another internet selling platform) to confirm the sum and that this auction really existed. Based on the total amount (auction price + dispatch costs) I have to pay 19 % VAT and 1,5 % import tax. You may avoid the import tax if you are able to proof that the item is over 100 years old. But the customs are very odd in accepting any ebay statements. They want a rather official certificate (in German) which is of course hardly to get when you did not have to sword in hand before. Therefore all in all I have to pay 20,5 % on the final price (which is quite a lot for basically no additional value). But that's the way it goes. In Germany with the customs checking either via Internet or wanting to see a printed bank account, there is hardly and space for cheating them. As a result I am trying to acquire swords from the EU but unfortuantely most of the interesting blades are sold in the US or in Japan. I hope this helps a bit even when I am not from Belgium :-) Stephan

Patrick, Many thanks for your quick reply. I had checked in my own Hawley's yesterday evening but must have been blind. I am in the office and don't have my books at hand, but will see today evening. Stephan