eternal_newbie

As I can't see any mekugi/mekugi-ana in the pictures, I expect the nakago to be a rat-tail tang.

Yep, unfortunately it is a fake sword, likely made in China. Here is a handy guide to telling the difference: https://www.jssus.org/nkp/fake_japanese_swords.html I would recommend against attempting to use it to cut anything, as these kinds of blades are known to have very weak tangs and have a habit of ejecting themselves from the handle if struck too hard.

https://www.viewingjapaneseprints.net/texts/topics_faq/collaboration.html I own one of these as well, a collaboration between five different artists from some of the less prestigious branches of the Kano school (if they were from the more prestigious ones I wouldn't have been able to afford it - although it could still be a reproduction nonetheless) and also of birds, although in this case each drew a different bird.

Bruno, for some reason that anecdote ended up being rendered as very large text in a very small scrollable area, so here's a transcript that's hopefully easier for people to read: To lighten the mood a bit, I'll tell you a story. In 1990, Dr. Sempé passed away, and his widow, fearing theft, hid his Andean archaeology collection, along with 70 tsuba and kozuka, behind a platform in their country house. Thirty-five years later, their daughter-in-law undertook renovations and rediscovered these completely forgotten collections. Naturally, all the tsuba and kozuka were corroded with numerous spots of red rust. Last Friday, I bought three of these tsuba at an auction. Here are photos of one of them before and after the cleaning I performed (washing with soapy water, scraping off the rust with bone, then lightly oiling). No corrosive products were used, of course.

I've seen this happen in real life! It's a behaviour called "mobbing" by ornithologists, and its purpose is to force out potential predators or competitors for resources.

Another casualty of the rapacious entitlement of the AI merchants (automated data harvesters for AI agents where overwhelming the site and they had to restrict search functionality to registered members). This is a win/win condition for the AI folks, because now the only way for the public to find that information will be however the AI models choose to serve up the data they harvested before Nihonto Club locked everyone out.

While there's always a market for the great masters, what's "in vogue" in the nihonto appreciation world does seem to oscillate between the refined jigane and elegant sugata of Kamakura and the vibrant hada and heroic (I've seen someone describe it as "masculine") sugata of Nanbokucho. And Masamune vs. Sadamune is really a question of whether you prefer a beautiful hamon or a beautiful jigane (Sadamune's is often described as the best in history, even surpassing his Awataguchi predecessors).

Would not surprise me at all, especially since so many dealers will quite happily write whatever value and description you want on the shipping manifest for the purposes of taxation/import duties.

Agreed. I know they don't allow photography for the Juyo exhibitions since these are all private collectors' blades, but hopefully someone convinces the owner to lend it out for some upcoming exhibition about Soshu or old Koto blades, and then we'll be able to view it in visitor photography and the museum catalog.

That does seem to be the official way to reach the page, although in my case I happened upon it by coincidence in a list of Google search results while doing research on another topic.

Update: For those who can't make it there, a page with an English writeup of all the exhibits is on the NBTHK's website (sadly, still no photographs): https://www.touken.or.jp/english/explanation/thefrontsndbackside.html Of particular interest - a Yukimitsu which is the only hitatsura blade by this smith to feature a zai-mei, a Kotetsu with a cutting test mei, and an absolutely massive (nearly 95cm) Hizen Masahiro which was likely a shrine dedication.

Generally no, however there is a requirement to obtain a permit for the exportation of any antique item worth over 200,000 JPY (this was in 2015, so the exact threshold may be different today): https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/17816-export-permit-for-tsuba-bought-in-Japan/ This process is somewhat less involved than the procedure for swords, and seems to take around 2 weeks at most. I'm not sure if the customs officials you dealt with were unfamiliar with the rules, didn't realize your tsuba were valuable, or simply didn't care because the swords were their primary concern. Perhaps they thought the tsuba and other antique parts were koshirae for your two blades and thus covered by the permits you did obtain.

Agreed. 100% fake. Here is a pictorial guide on how to distinguish between fakes and the real deal: https://www.jssus.org/nkp/fake_japanese_swords.html

My thoughts exactly; I've been a regular visitor to that site for years and somehow missed this gem.

Have purchased many supplies and books from them over the years, no complaints or issues whatsoever in that regard.