When Necessary

Hello Charles, That's a lovely sword! May I ask the blade length? Dee Addendum: you just beat me to it! 😁

I think what this proves is that the initial list of info is complete and utter bollocks. For example: MURAMATSU KIHEI HIDENAO, age 62 katana mei: Kuninaga (1,1), length 2 shaku 8 sun wakizashi mei: Samuhiro (?,1), length 2 shaku 4 sun long yari Now look at the photos. Apart from being suddenly mumei, does that wakizashi look remotely like 2 shaku 4 sun?

Like this.

https://www.shitsurae-Japan.com/p/shinto-and-cannabis-a-sacred-connection

That's the right way round to read the signature but it looks like you're missing a character at the very top.

I forgot DT's tariffs.

'Type 94 converted to type 98' - when the the 94 was superior in its koshirae. 'Civilian to military' when the Yasukuni swords forged at the shrine were specifically made for military officers. A Taketoku signed blade (thus made outside the shrine and not subject to its strict parameters) of unusual length with a back up mekugi-ana near the butt of the equally long nakago. Yeah whatever - make up as many reasons as you want for a glaring anomaly. Who knows, maybe the aliens who were designing Hitler's flying saucers asked for a Yasukunito with an extra hole they could probe?

Hi Francis? That is a very intriguing sword - congratulations! 😃👍 Could I just ask if the black areas shown on the blade below are holes or pits or whether (as seems likely from the photograph) merely dark marks on the blade surface?

It's in a batch of books on Mercari but I don't know how you order that from outside Japan. https://jp.mercari.com/item/m93248872795?utm_source=ios&source_location=share&utm_medium=share And a more expensive copy on Amazon.jp which should be orderable. https://www.amazon.co.jp/趣味の透し鐔・小刀作り-1980年-成木-一彦/dp/B000J89HNY

Well, I'm meeting a member of the Japanese cabinet tomorrow so I'll ask him what he thinks. 🤔 But that is neither here nor there and I've brought this thread completely off topic for which I apologize - the topic is far too interesting to be derailed. So.... I was once offered a third generation Muramasa in a gunto koshirae and have always regretted not taking out a bank loan to buy it. There were definitely high-status blades taken to war by those who had the right family, the right rank or the right bank balance. I'm looking forward to hearing of more (no matter who polished them).

Usually yes Bruce, but, to repeat what I said earlier, Yasutoku left the Yasukuni shrine in 1940 and returned home to Hiroshima Prefecture. He then signed either 'Ujimasa' or 'Daito Masamune' until 1945. He never returned to sword making after the war - ergo, any of his swords signed 'Yasutoku' and found in shingunto mounts should only have a single mekugi-ana. A Showa blade in wartime mounts with two mekugi-ana usually indicates a later 'bubba' modification during a mix and match.

That's about to change in Japan with the new political moves afoot. Being a 'gaijin' is going to matter a great deal - especially in an ultra-conservative, nationalistic group such as the sword world. With Komeito ditching the LDP, the latter are going to try to team up with Sanseito and other anti-foreigner parties to regain their majority. Welcome back 1930s.

I can't begin to understand how such commissions arise between craftsmen and their clients but I wish him well in what is obviously an already successful business.

'Sticks and stones....' I don't profess to know what you want, I honestly don't wish to know what you want. So, let's make this little chat a one-off, shall we? I'll not directly engage with you when we both comment on the same thread and I would appreciate the same consideration from you. Goodbye.

It's beautiful work from what I can see. How many Japanese collectors does he have as customers?

Aw, you're just annoyed because you want one.

You're right, he left in 1940 because of his ill son who himself left in 1941 and died in 1942. Sickness and death always makes me mix my years up. I must be getting maudlin and sentimental. 😢 My point was just the two mekugi-ana- pure and simple. So, as I'm not your lackey -I suggest that, as you have such a bee in your bonnet about the exact date on the nakago, you should get up off your arse and do a bit of research in the very helpful kanji resource section at the bottom of the main site index. Run along and have fun! 👋

Bully for them - Jolly good show 👏👏 i just never thought that even a fully apprenticed gaijin would ever be let anywhere near the big boys' toys.

What does that have to do with two mekugi-ana? You really do have to some research on Yasukunito, old boy. Yasutoku left the Yasukuni shrine in 1941 and returned home to Hiroshima Prefecture. He then signed either 'Ujimasa' or 'Daito Masamune' until 1945. He never returned to sword making after the war - ergo, any of his swords signed 'Yasutoku' and found in gunto mounts should only have a single mekugi-ana.

We Well, now that I've shown him a real one, he's probably gotten his chisel guy to copy that onto all his mumei gunto.

Interesting, so a sword which a non-Japanese polished passed Tokuju.

Why on earth would a Yasukunito have two mekugi-ana?

Hi John, I believe that someone else in this thread said it ended at $15,000.

This is the response I received from Showa22 after pointing out his tanto was gimei. His reply speaks volumes.