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I am a novice Japanese learner, having used Duolingo and tofugu.com to learn hiragana and @Ray Singer flash cards for swordsmith and province kanji. As others say, learning hiragana helps a lot with pronounciation. I am on to katakana next. Before learning hiragana, I initially learned basic phrases through Duolingo and memorized them phonetically so that I could say basic things while ordering food or purchasing something in Japan. That worked well enough for most tourist situations, but I was lost on reading anything.

Thanks for sharing your experience in detail @MEENag. Sorry to hear it took so long and was so frustrating, but I hope receiving your sword makes it all worthwhile in the end.

Duties and tariffs are different things. The referenced HTS Code has been in place for some time, and it has exempted antiques over 100 years old from the imposition of duties. I have not seen the signed US-Japan trade agreement to see if it uses this HTS Code to exempt antiques over 100 years old from the imposition of the 15% tariff. The first executive order in April did not have this carve out. In other words, if the signed US-Japan trade agreement does not have an exception for this HTS Code, US buyers/importers may be in a position where, technically, antique blades are exempt from duties but not exempt from tariffs. Of course, actual enforcement of the tariffs and on-the-ground confusion over whether the HTS Code applies is another matter.

@Toryu2020 has given you an excellent suggestion. As a bonus, Robert Hughes @Keichodo is a fun guy to be around.

And some from Itoh-san.

I think tsuba collectors will appreciate this one.

Yes, they belong to Fred, and they are not for sale.

Yesterday I got to study a TJ Aoe with prominent multi-layered utsuri unlike anything I have seen as well as the TJ Niji Kunitoshi that did not sell in the Davidson auction. Both are outstanding blades worthy of their status. The TJ Aoe will be part of the NBTHK-AB presentation later today.

For those unable to attend, there is a Go Yoshihiro katana and a signed Norishige tanto (both in the photos from @Toryu2020). Unfortunately, they are only for display and not for sale. Both are valuable pieces for learning, nonetheless, if you have not seen other examples in person. And there are lots of other swords that are for sale and attainable.

I found the sword you are asking about: Aoi Art

I am looking forward to it!

Thank you very much, Lex. This is extremely helpful and exactly what I needed. How long did the entire process take for you?

For those who have done it recently, I am curious about the process of exporting a sword through Narita airport as you leave Japan. Obviously, the export permit has to be approved in advance. How hard was the actual airport experience, especially with zero language skills?

These are seven original shipping and storage boxes for the Nihonto Taikan volumes. Each is made of cardboard and has styrofoam to cushion the book (books not included). Three of them are slightly deeper than the others. Good condition with each having been marked on one end with black marker. $100 USD for all plus actual shipping cost. These weigh about 7 pounds, so shipping should be less than $40 within the continental USA by UPS Ground.