eternal_newbie

Update: Yamanaka Newsletters Volume 4 Issue #9 available: Yamanaka V4 NL09

I think Kanemitsu, like Kiyomaro, is one of those smiths whose sugata and hamon shape alone is usually so eye-catching that it even enchants people who don't know enough about swords to tell you why a Masamune is superior to a shinsakuto. Anecdotally, for partners/family being "dragged" to one of these exhibitions, Kiyomaro is the undisputed king of "okay, I have to admit that looks pretty cool"

Even aside from the Japanese concept of wabi-sabi, the general consensus in *all* fields dealing with historical artworks and antiquities is that it's better to leave something in a state of decay, arrested as best you can manage, than incorrectly restore it. For your consideration, I submit the most famous example in modern times: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecce_Homo_(García_Martínez_and_Giménez)

Could the piece of metal separating the two openings have simply broken/rusted away?

Hi Grey, Looks like you posted the link for the Shinshinto Taikan twice. This is the link for the Shinto Taikan: https://japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/book/sword-books/b765-shinto-taikan-by-iimura/

The classic quote from a Thomas Buttweiler essay: There are perhaps 500 Ko-Bizen swords left in existence today. About 200 of these have been awarded Juyo Token status or higher [ca. 1980]. The vast majority of even these recognized examples are in greatly deteriorated condition. Nearly all of these have been polished down to a point where they retain only a hint of their former elegance. In many cases, the Boshi is incomplete or missing altogether. Many of the remaining blades have been burned or re-tempered. Even so, the desirability of such blades remains undiminished. The words of one elderly Japanese connoisseur while examining a blade with all of the above faults, are classic. He held the blade at arms length for a long time and turned, smiled, and said, “But, it's Ko-Bizen.”

Those last three are much better, thank you. I'm inclined to agree with Gordon that this is a standard ko-maru, although with the better photographs I wouldn't go so far as to call the round-ish bits a mistake, just some additional nie activities (yubashiri or kuichigai-ba) that ended up looking a little strange due to the distortion of the kissaki's shape.

To your question on veracity - the description appears to be *mostly* accurate; the item in question is a Shimosaka school yari, authenticated by an NBTHK Hozon token paper, with a blade measuring 26.36cm and a nakago (tang) measuring 34.7cm. What should be noted is that the NBTHK paper does not specify an era - in other words, the determination that the blade dates from the late Muromachi to early Edo period is the opinion of the dealer, not the NBTHK.

After reading some of the anecdotes here about how underfunded and understaffed museums treat their swords, I think that as long as the trend has legs, this is a good thing. People will want to see these and they will expect (and pay) for them to be maintained and presented properly.

Kanemitsu being one of my favourite smiths, I've been waiting to see pics of this one ever since that auction concluded. Glad to see the wait wasn't too long; hopefully some folks with good nihonto photography skills/gear are in attendance!

That makes a bit more sense, I guess. And as mentioned before - the ability to encode things at a microscopic level maybe makes that all a bit more feasible as a proof of authenticity (I guess similar to the serial numbers on diamonds) without affecting the overall appearance and integrity of the work.

Well then, just disregard everything I said. Was this whole thing just a trick question?

As @Rivkin pointed out, it was done through kinzoganmei, shumei, and sometimes even inscribed as mei when the shortening was done by a smith - and this was hardly a guarantee of authenticity as handwriting, kao etc. can be faked just as easily (perhaps more easily) than NBTHK papers. Some things to consider: Even kinzogan, shumei and actual mei are subject to decay, especially as it's still mostly considered taboo to oil or otherwise preserve the nakago. There are many swords papered by the NBTHK with a signature or attribution that is no longer legible. Attributions can, and do, change frequently as scholarship in the field advances - and that's excluding all the known cases where nefarious intent was involved. Appraisers' trustworthiness can fall into disrepute, and even the NBTHK itself had to invalidate an entire series of papers (Kicho and Tokubetsu Kicho) due to corruption in the branch offices. If those had been inscribed directly on the nakago, that's now permanent damage to a historical artifact that cannot be undone; at best, covered up or crushed. These are not just historical artifacts but in many cases, works of art with national significance. Imagine suggesting that museums place an official stamp on a Van Gogh or chiseled into a Rodin as proof of its authenticity, should the item be stolen. Can you anticipate what objections to this might arise? In the end, as time, knowledge and researching techniques advance, the same holds true for nihonto as with any other form of art and historical artifact: the work has to speak for itself. EDIT: there are, however, some technological solutions that may become available. For example, something similar to an anti-theft ID dot with microscopic details or miniature RFID chip with identifying information affixed to the end of a nakago in a non-destructive manner is something that may become feasible in the future.

At current exchange rates that works out to around 175-180 USD, 27,500-28,000 JPY or 150-155 EUR

And the cost of a decent custom-made habaki would likely push the blade into a higher budget tier, especially given the price of precious metals right now.