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Thank you @Hector I kinda had the same feeling as well so this one will be a hard pass

Been a photographer for 10 years and only recently tried to take pictures of Nihonto for Lloyd Flemmings book. I think this is one of if not the most extreem case of how light affects what gets captured. White LED vs plain incandescant bulb Same blade, about the the same spot, about the same light position and brightness. No enhancement or sharpening LED seems to hide much of the ko hada present. This is also very noticable on hand as well.

My bad @Lewis B should be fixed now

Hello Been looking for a tsuka here and there and came across this one. I only know enough to spot blatant fakes so I was wondering if anyone could definitively say if this was was authentic or not. The ito wrap looks authentic ( albeit not very well done ) but the fuchi / kashira looks kinda suspect Thank you in advance Kevin

Would love to hear from the experienced, knowledgeable soshu den members what you think made the NBTHK lean Den Masamune over other attributions. It certainly must have been big decision @Rivkin @Tsuku @Hoshi @eternal_newbie @Gakusee @Lewis B and anyone I missed

just saw this on Aoi https://www.aoijapan.com/katanamumei-attributed-to-den-masamune-nbthk-tokubetsu-hozon-token-consignment-sale/ very thin and lots of ware but still cool to see anything related to Masamune / Den Masamune come up

Amazing quality photos . Thank you for posting this @Lewis B

100% and well said @Alex A

Very intersting piece @CSM101 ! Havent seen that one yet from all the sue bizen I looked through over the last few years. Reminds me of the magnicicent Kiyomitsu sword I currently own https://eirakudo.shop/token/wakizashi/detail/319916 I took a shot and emailed Mr Sesko about it and he was very generous to respond to me His #1 reason is what I would assume happened to this Sukesada

You are most welcome @PEF87 ! And yes the link to the listing will be great. Cant seem to open the imgur link

Hi @PEF87 What an awesome idea for a gift ! It would depend on what he plans to do with a the sword. A modern blade would definitely be the way to go if he plans on iaito and tameshigiri. If this is something for artistic and historical appreciation , then you can definitely find something he d love for around $4000 usd. The condition in that price range will vary depending on the smith and time period. I personally love muromachi blades and decent ones can definitely be had around that range. Id love to provide you with some links to listings. There are also shinto ( year 1600 + ) And shinshinto ( year 1770 + ) but I am not very familiar with those timelines. Generally , In my personal opinion, shinto and shinshinto swords will be in better condition but lacks historical and artistic appeal for me. This is of course grossly simplified description for ease of understanding and you ll soon see that there are endless pathways and considerations to take as a buyer / collector Happy to help if you have any questions

Hi @Francis Wick I might have made an error and it might be a different "kane" kanji on the blade. I ll see what I can find in Sesko

Hi @Francis Wick Bizen Kanemitsu worked in the Bunmei Does the sword have papers ? Bizen smiths tend to have good, even, consistent mei strokes but this one seems a bit off based on the pic. The hada also looks extremely pronounced in that pic. Might have been acid etched at some point and/or improperly cleaned/polished

Absolutely perfect. Love Satsuma blades and Naminohira is definitely near the top of my bucket list of swords Id like to have in my collection next. I personally have only seen the NBTHK designate a blade as Tachi when it s ubu and/or has a tachi mei

Thank you everyone for such great insight on the topic. I have very little knowledge of Shoshu so every bit of information is greatly appreciated 🙏🙏🙏