Marcus Devonport

High stakes 😅 But, If I *were* a betting man, I'd be placing on a Bizen attribution from NBTHK... Maybe going as far as saying Early Muramachi. I feel that the characteristics are very fitting of the school: Choji Hamon ✅ Clear Utsuri ✅ Midare-Komi Boshi ✅

Apologies to be a little late to respond to this thread, I'm also a curious as its a very different direction to the Bizen attribution others were taking. Hamon looks to be mostly choji, with very prominent utsuri, although I do struggle picking up the structure of the hada in this particular sword 🤔 struggling to see any mention to choji on the Japanese Sword Index for Mino-Den, but not conclusive by any means.

Cheers Rob, greatful for the feedback- it's all been useful 😁 Whilst they both share an irregular pattern, feels there's some subtle differences between mine and Jizo- felt more inclined towards Midare-Komi, given the lack of constricted "neck" in the pattern . 'Japanese Sword Index' makes mention of Midare-Komi, within the possible traits of Bizen blades.

Thanks Curran, appreciate you putting this together 😁 a very well put summary, in what can otherwise be an overwhelming topic of study. I can definitely see the plausibility of the pair being yoshioka, after looking over the examples. Given the precise, uniform application of the nanako; I feel that Yoshioka school would be the best possible scenario.

Thanks Rob- don't have access to my books right now, but I do remember owning a soshu blade once with such a boshi. "Jizo" I think the style is, and it was very apparent in the one I had. Not sure whether or not I can lump this one into that catagory. I was leaning towards midare komi. But again, will need to get out the books to check

Thank you, Jack- Alexander Farmer kindly offered his translation of the Mei as Juzaemon Miharu, on Facebook- it's good to see the two align and have some extra context on the lineage 🙂

Would you be able to message me with details, if possible? Wouldnt rule out the potential of taking out a loan, especially for the right sword.

I remember seeing a stunning set of swords posted on the Token Society members area, that sit a little out of my price range- remember pricing being around £8k, would these be the same ones? Would be keen to hear about them, either way 😁 I've had good luck so far with finding blades at auction, although doing my best to avoid making such decisions on unpapered items, unless I'm able to view beforehand. Most of my Nihonto have been found below £2k, but looking to invest more into the hobby and getting better swords over the coming months.

Looking past the highly-set yakiba, the styling of the hamon is very reminiscent to that of the Yasumitsu sword you posted. I'm beginning to appreciate the similarities between the two swords, and how the shaping of the boshi is a near match. Its made in the same spirit of an Oei Bizen sword, that I'm fairly certain... Being a relative beginner, it takes some effort to see what may be obvious to the more seasoned collectors 😁 Thanks for this, Hoshi.

Thank you for the kind words. I'm grateful that such an opportunity came up, as the sword wasn't openly on the market when it was offered to me- I had about given up on Nihonto hunting, given how infrequent the UK market can be. Because of this, even average blades reach astronomical prices. May look further into the yoshioka tradition, Ill hopefully start seeing some resemblances. What leads you in the direction of this particular school, Curran? As a beginner, interested in learning as much as I can

Thanks for this, Jussi- I feel like there are may possibilities, but I see the resemblance between this and my own sword- particularly the boshi area. You're absolutely correct, in terms of the swords current size. Enjoying following this thread, as there's a lot of good suggestions being put forward.

Thank you very much for this, Hoshi- I'll admit, I do like the idea of the blade belonging to this line of smiths. I do intend on sending it off for Shinsa in the following year, so would be exciting to see whether they agree on it being such a blade.

This is Fantastic. What made you arrive at oei/bunmei bizen, just for my own learning? I haven't handled too many pieces that predate shinto period, so learning to appreciate the qualities of older swords. Keen to learn what I can from you 😁

Hi Lewis, I think this may be something that's carried through from editing- think compressing the image made this only appear worse. It's a cloudy patch on the Ji, as shown here? It does look like a big old thumb print in the original post! I religiously wipe off my blades, so hopefully theres no fingerprints left over from the previous owners 🙂 it's always a worry though

Hi All, Starting a thread, following on a previous post in the Tosogu section. Was hoping I could get some thoughts on my latest acquisition- an O-Suriage Wakizashi that came to me in rather high-end koshirae. Any signature which it may once have held has been lost to shortening, although Im hoping there may be enough signs to point towards an attribution to any particular school. It has some of the classic hallmarks of Bizen-den swords, although Im curious what others might see in the blade. I've attached images, which may be split across multiple entries due to size. Thanks all, look forward to hearing your thoughts and maybe an attribution of your own. - Marcus.

Thanks Lewis, appreciate that posting into the Nihonto section would probably be my best start! A few weeks ago, I had an opportunity to share thoughts with Paul Bowman and Ian Chapman, both have a lifetimes worth of experience in collecting such swords (thanks, if either are reading this!)- I would be interested in seeing how their opinions compare to that of the NBTHK Shinsa panel. I don't recall the Tsuba being a signed piece, although I may have to take a second look next time it's out for maintenance.

A few bonus tosogu shots... -Marcus

Thanks Brian, it's one of the few times I've gotten lucky and managed to close a deal. Hardest challenge by far has been getting the photography right. Hopefully I've done it justice... -Marcus.

Now onto the koshirae... I cant understate how impressed I was, upon seeing it in person- And its left me with a newfound appreciation for Tosogu. I'm really fond of the subject matter; 'Tigers in Bamboo Grove'- a theme that carries on into the design of the Fuchi-Kashira, Koiguchi, Kurigata & Kojiri. As a complete set, it gives a nice sense of continuity to the Koshirae. But for me, the stand-out quality of the Futakoromono was the biggest highlight. Both the Kogai & Kozuka feature a golden trio of Aoi-Kamon, framed by an incredibly fine nanako-work background. Its very much the focal point of the koshirae set, when on display. Again, ill be sure to share photos. Thanks All- hope you enjoy, - Marcus.

Hi All, Wanted to come back to this thread with a long awaited update. I eventually made the 4 hour journey to look over the wakizashi in person. I was instantly drawn to this sword; whilst not in pristine polish, I thought the blade showed a great amount of promise. The sword showed all the hallmarks of classic 'Bizen-Den' workmanship- it may be the first time I've been able to observe Utsuri within a blade, outside of a textbook I'll drop a few photos in the thread for those interested- I think it may well be a good candidate for Shinsa application, in the near future.