Lexvdjagt

Hello Randy, John answered most questions wonderfully. This sword is, in my opinion, a clear forgery. Having said that, do not attempt to import this sword into Japan, as non-traditionally made Japanese swords are illegal and punishable by law. To illustrate my point, I want you to look at the HADA, which is the blade's surface area, highlighted in blue by me. Compare this example to a genuine Edo-period sword (which this fake is attempting to imitate) The Hada on your sword is drastically different; it seems to end just before the shinogi in a straight line. Note the difference in tone of the hamon too. The sword may look like highly skilled craftsmanship, but a factory-produced blade can imitate a lot. The blade I compared yours to can be found here: https://www.touken-matsumoto.jp/ja/product/shousai/WA-0853. Please, if you have any other questions let me know. Greetings, Lex van der Jagt

The blade looks wonderful. I would get it sent to Shinsa to get their opinion on it. Or just enjoy it as is, there is much to learn from the hamon!

When you say you cleaned the sword, what does that entail?

Still for sale Lowering the price to 3500 EUR

Lowering price to 2500 EUR

Price reduced to 3600 EURO Shipping to the US is possible. I will give a discount to US clients to compensate for the (possible) tariffs.

950 EUR

A very interesting thread, This discussion is wonderful and insightful. Having said that, there are some points I disagree on. I personally will not take auction results from auctioneers like Christie’s, Sothebys (or other high end auction houses), as a market parameter. These auctions are in many cases outliers, and one auction or auction house is to me not a proper market indicator. Having been active as a dealer in the antique market when I started at 14 has taught me A lot about market decline and rise. I have sold ancient Roman and Greek coinage ever since I was 14. The coin market is very transparent, you’ll always be able to check the market price for a particular coin. I have a very wide range of databases that I use to figure out the price increase or decline of certain coins (which overall has seen an uphill increase). But from the perspective of a coin dealer this transparency is also a curse, my profits are low (because anyone can find out where they can get it from my source), and I focus on selling in quantity to make a living. This cannot be said about Nihonto. When I started buying Nihonto, I desperately wanted to gain intimate knowledge of the market and trends within the market. I have never been rich so I’ve always focused on the Hozon-Tokubetsu Hozon range. The market is completely dependant on location and clients, it’s a whole different game. There is no standard metric to compare your swords to. The Japanese market is very different depending on who you know or where you can get into (for example dealer auctions). Dealers can really truly ask whatever they want, if they have a client willing to pay. There is of course some basic understanding of price, but it can wildly differ. Overall in Japan when I talk to dealers, some can be quite optimistic. Looking to branch out more and reach more clients, and working to get young people interested in Nihonto. I don’t worry as much, at least not at my collecting price point. Greetings, Lex

I am hereby offering this nice Sukesada Katana with stunning hataraki, with NBTHK hozon papers. Specifications: Nagasa (Blade Length): 67.0 cm Sori (Curvature): 1.8 cm Width at Base (Motohaba): 3.05 cm Width at Tip (Sakihaba): 2.25 cm Thickness at Base (Motokasane): 0.73 cm Thickness at Tip (Sakikasane): 0.51 cm Number of Peg Holes: 2 (ubu) Blade Description: A very nice Katana signed Bishū Osafune Sukesada, dated Tenshō 22 (1594) – 8th month, accompanied by an NBTHK Hozon Certificate and fitted with a silver-covered copper habaki. The blade is constructed in shinogi-zukuri, with a high shinogi and low iori-mune, and a large kissaki. The steel surface is a tightly forged ko-itame, with flowing areas where the grain stands out. The blade is covered with good ji-nie, and the jigane is described as healthy. The hamon is a nioi-based complex gunome-midare, incorporating small gunome, notare, and small midare, with kinsuji working through the interior of the hamon. The hataraki is stunning, as can be seen in my images. Very nice blade to study hamon activity. The nakago is ubu. Condition Some scratches on the blade overall, as can be seen in the images. Some foraging imperfections on the blade, but it does not distract from the stunning hamon. Image disclaimer The overview images of the entire blade had their background removed. Please do not use these images as a reference for the condition of the blade, as they have been altered. All other images are unaltered. Price: €2700 Free shipping inside EU Shipping outside EU available for a small additional cost (€20–40) Shipped with UPS Express, fully insured to full value Located in the Netherlands – pickup possible Please feel free to message me if you have any questions.

Price: €2300 Free shipping inside EU Shipping outside EU available for a small additional cost (€20–40) Shipped with UPS Express, fully insured to full value Located in the Netherlands – pickup possible Please feel free to message me if you have any questions.

I am hereby offering this nice Sukesada Katana in polish with NBTHK hozon papers. Specifications: Nagasa (Blade Length): 68.7 cm Sori (Curvature): 1.7 cm Width at Base (Motohaba): 3.22 cm Width at Tip (Sakihaba): 2.17 cm Thickness at Base (Motokasane): 0.70 cm Thickness at Tip (Sakikasane): 0.48 cm Number of Peg Holes: 1 (ubu) Blade Description: A signed and dated katana by Bishū Osafune Sukesada, forged in Tenshō 5 (1577) at the very end of the Sengoku period. The sword is housed in a luxurious shirasaya, fitted with a solid silver double habaki, and is accompanied by an NBTHK Hozon Certificate. The steel surface (jigane) consists of a tight ko-itame mixed with itame, with flowing areas where the grain stands out more strongly. Thick ji-nie covers the surface, giving the sword a rich, textured appearance. The hamon is based on small gunome-midare, incorporating notare, small midare, and small chōji, with a slightly subdued but well-defined nioiguchi lined in ko-nie. Inside the hamon are ashi, yo, kinsuji, and sunagashi, producing lively hataraki typical of Sue-Bizen workmanship. The bōshi continues in a gentle notare into the kissaki and ends in a hakikake-style turn-back. The tang (nakago) remains ubu, with its original shape. Condition Some small scratches can be observed, but it is overall in very good polish. There are some foraging imperfections on the blade, including some longer ones in the boshi. No fatal flaws. Image disclaimer The overview images of the entire blade had their background removed (in this case, a small part of the kissaki was accidentally removed by my software). Please do not use these images as a reference for the condition of the blade, as they have been altered. All other images are unaltered.

I am hereby offering this Echizen Rai katana. Specifications: Blade Length (Nagasa): 69.2 cm Curvature (Sori): 2.1 cm Mekugi-ana: 2 Nakago: Ō-suriage, mumei Dimensions: Motohaba: ~31.3 mm Motokasane: ~6.8 mm Sakihaba: ~24.3 mm Sakikasane: ~5.3 mm Bare Blade Weight: approx. 737.6 g Type: Shinogi-zukuri Blade Description: A stunning Nanbokucho period katana attributed to the Echizen Rai (越前来) school with recent NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon papers, and previously attributed to Sa Kunihiro (左国弘) by Tokubetsu Kichō papers. Both attributions place this sword solidly in the Nanbokucho period. Although this sword clearly is not the work of Sa Kunihiro, the old paper was still preserved. I find it interesting to see how older NBTHK papers can differ from new papers. The blade exhibits classic Nanbokucho characteristics, including a wide Motohaba and longer kissaki. The jigane tight itame in certain areas, which can be well observed in some of my images. There is also Mokume, and overall Jigane that reflects previous older Rai works. There are sections where the hada stands out more prominently. Ji-nie is present throughout, giving the steel surface a rich, textured appearance. The hamon is a suguha-notare temper with activity visible, a lot of nie can be observed. See my Hamon images for a proper idea of the hataraki. The bōshi is Omaru, and is still very visible. The nakago is ō-suriage, typical for early Nanbokuchō swords, with two mekugi-ana. The sword is fitted with a habaki and comes in shirasaya (with reinforcing tape applied). Condition Some scratches can be observed, with one longer scratch visible on the images; all flaws have been photographed and are visible on the images. The scratches are shallow and do not distract from the blade itself. There are no significant ware of imperfections on the blade. It is a very clean Nanbokucho Echizen Rai blade that is ready to be appreciated. Image disclaimer The overview images of the entire blade had their background removed. Please do not use these images as a reference for the condition of the blade, as they have been altered. All other images are unaltered. Sometimes my camera can be seen in the reflection of the blade in the bohi. These are not imperfections. Price: €3700 Free shipping inside EU Shipping outside EU available for a small additional cost (€20–40) Shipped with UPS Express, fully insured to full value Located in the Netherlands – pickup possible Please feel free to message me if you have any questions.

Hello Ed, My apologies, I might not have been very clear in my previous message. What I specifically meant is that when shipping to the US through PostNL (especially when you are under contract with PostNL). They will charge you the US tariff when the package arrives at US customs. So not the buyer but the sender. This same situation caused issues when shipping from Japan to the US as well as mentioned by @Gerry.

Hello Ed, Shipments from the US —> Netherlands are unchanged from the previous no US tariff situation (So either 9% or 21% VAT depending on the HS code used). The tariff is only applicable when you ship goods from outside the US to the US. Its wise to get a good grip of the different HS codes, please feel free to send me a message if you’d like me to provide the best HS codes to get the 9% VAT charge (in Dutch customs). Groetjes, Lex

Hello Steve, Like Moriyama-san implies, this dealer is reselling another shops inventory. This is a typical Yahoo Auctions reseller. You can also easily spot a Yahoo reseller when they have vastly different photographing styles in their listings. Greetings, Lex van der Jagt