eternal_newbie

Regarding your other question - fake mei were indeed added quite early on. This would allow you to present your lord with a big-named blade to preserve your honour and raise yourself in his esteem, even if you didn't have the resources or influence to actually acquire one. And the lord, probably having at least one or two good sword appraisers on hand, if not being one himself, would tacitly accept this and exchange this "treasure" with another less prosperous vassal as a reward for some minor deed.

Not in that style. Dai-mei or dai-saku, a work either made by Shintogo's pupil or signed by Shintogo would have been in his style (silky Awataguchi jigane with chikei, thin suguha hamon rich with activity). Ask yourself why the inside of the strokes are filled with the same lighter coloured rust as some of the surface staining while the rest of the nakago is covered in black patina. Edit: Uwe provides a good example above. The mei there is much more recent than Shintogo's time, being from the Edo period. Yet it has the same dark patina as the rest of the nakago.

ECHIZEN JYUNIN KANENORI 越前住人兼則 according to the title of the video. The mei of the Yahoo auction link is 越前住人兼中作 (Echizen ju nin Kanenaka saku) so there's at least one other possible maker who signed that way.

and https://auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/b1081647069 Keep in mind that the part of the mei describing their location can change often and with the times. Less important than the exact kanji is the chiseling (or engraving) style and location and, of course, the blade itself.

Rare, but not unheard of. Try searching the kanji instead: 越前住人 There were many smiths who were either undocumented, or had alternative signatures that were never recorded as they progressed in their career. This may not even have been an Echizen smith, but rather one from another province who happened to be moving through Echizen at the time and picked up some work at a forge or apprenticed to a smith in the region.

For a blade that was already quite short, the most common reason is due to damage to the hamon close to the habaki. Suriage in this manner preserves its utility as a fighting weapon.

Yasukuni Isshinshi Kariya Naohide (靖国一心子 刈谷直秀) was an Army engineer commissioned during World War II and is widely known as the last Yasukuni swordsmith. He is a gendai swordsmith representing Tosa and Kōchi. He has been selected and awarded dozens of times at exhibitions such as the New Masterpiece Sword Exhibition (Shinsaku meitō-ten, 新作名刀展), the New Sword Exhibition (Shinsakutō tenran-kai, 新作刀展覧会) and the Kochi Prefectural Exhibition (Kōchi ken-ten, 高知県展). Naohide was born Kariya Naoharu (刈谷直治) on November 10th 1917 in Kōchi Prefecture. He joined the Japanese Sword Forging Association (Nihontō tanren-kai, 日本刀鍛錬会) in April 1937 under the swordsmith Ikeda Yasumitsu (池田靖光) who was the chief smith at Yasukini Shrine. Naoharu inherited the character "hide" (秀) from Yasumitsu's master Ikeda Kazuhide (池田一秀), becoming Yasukuni Naohide (靖国直秀). On June 17th 1939, he was drafted into the army where he made five guntō using Chinese railway steel. Naohide was discharged on December 11th 1942, and in January 1943 he was approved as an army-appointed swordsmith (Rikugun jumei tōshō, 陸軍受命刀匠) and began forging swords at the Tosa Japanese Sword Forging Association (Tosa nihontō tanren kumiai, 土佐日本刀鍛錬組合). Following the war's conclusion the GHQ banned the production of nihontō, but the ban was lifted by the San Francisco Peace Treaty and Naohide forged a sword to commemorate the occasion. He also made an appearance in the documentary Yasukuni (2007) as the last living Yasukuni swordsmith from the wartime era. Sources: Meirin Sangyo, Tsuruginoya, Tōken Hasegawa Other works by Naohide (yes, the sword is a legitimate gendaitō and consistent with his other work): https://www.touken-hasegawa.jp/item/MKI-44 (listed price unknown) https://www.tsuruginoya.com/items/a00656.html (listed for ¥550,000 in 2024) https://www.nipponto.co.jp/swords9/KT337837.htm (listed price unknown) http://sword-Japanese.seesaa.net/article/430137423.html (listed for ¥158,000 in 2015) More information on Yasukuni (2007): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yasukuni_(film)

Definitely the first one (i.e. on the left); not because of the design, but because of the minute details and crisp lines. It's the execution that makes it superior. It doesn't just apply to something as complex as a Fudo-Myoo; Juyo commentary will often include things like "in addition, the bo-hi is carved with skill and dignity, adding to the charm of the sword."

Soshu-influenced, so Nanbokucho at earliest. Shimada maybe, or one of the northern Etchu/Echizen smiths after being influenced by Norishige. There are more, shall we say prestigious, possibilities, but for that the current state of the polish would hide the fine activities and nie they're known for. Could also be a later smith doing their shot at a Norishige utsushi.

Also if the blade was polished at some point the horimono would have lost some of its original definition.

One other reason horimono are added to blades is to hide flaws (fukure, ware, heavy rust damage). Not saying that's the case here, but something to keep in mind, especially when you see a horimono that's particularly clumsily executed or awkwardly placed.

The same advice as before remains relevant - in the absence of a good polish, better photos will help. Black, non-reflective background for more contrast, and a closer look at the steel patterns on the blade (particularly towards the tip end). There are some good examples in these threads: https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/53882-photographing-nihonto-my-experience/ https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/49360-kamakura-period-kodachi-with-sayagaki-by-honami-nishu/page https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/files/file/95-photographing-nihonto/ You won't need as much detail or high-level equipment as the photos there (especially since your blade is out of polish) but that should give you a general idea of the size, angles and resolutions that could help people provide a better guess. That said, I'm inclined to go with Kirill's guess earlier in the thread - Yamato den, 1400s, Mihara or Senjuin school work (with an outside chance of Uda based on some of the large patterning under the habaki area).

Lovely video, by the way. No unnecessary dramatics or music, just a trained professional absorbed in his work.

Yep. Ko-Aoe Tametsugu (為次), not Echizen/Etchu Tametsugu (為継).

With links for additional information as there are a whole lot of big names in those four sentences: There was a little bit of Chinese style in all tosogu styles. The God of tosogu, Gotō Yūjō, was influenced by his friend Kanō Masanobu, and Chinese paintings influenced Kano's style, whose major patron Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was a huge fan of Chinese art. In the Edo era, tosogu masters often collaborated with painters, and these painters could also receive direct/indirect influence from Chinese artists. For example, Ichinomiya Nagatsune's collaborator Maruyama Ōkyo, Ōtsuki Mitsuoki's collaborator Kishi Ganku, and Ishiguro Masatsune all received direct influence from the Chinese painter Shen Quan.

Thanks Jussi. Seems like a somewhat higher pass rate than the last couple of years, closer to the historical average. Then again, there seems to be about 100 less swords submitted than last year, so maybe people have been a bit more selective with what they send in and thus an increase in the overall quality of the submissions.

The straw colouring post-polish makes me wonder if it was actually the residue of previously applied oil (tsubaki / camellia oil is used by several polishers and dealers and apparently tends to solidify if left unattended too long). As you applied and wiped off choji oil over the years it would have eventually taken off the old residue with it, which would have slowly allowed the obscured hataraki and hada to be exposed again.

I don't know about cheap but I've been using this one without issue: https://japanesesword.net/collections/accessories/products/sword-oil-large100cc It looks like you can get a smaller bottle here: https://japanesesword.net/collections/accessories/products/sword-oil-small20cc If someone else has a source for better (or cheaper) stuff I'd be interested too.

In the future you might also consider putting up multiple listings (e.g. all menuki) in a single post; not only does it make it easier for people to view but some people may choose to buy multiples at once

This is the usual practice; kirikomi generally aren't seen as flaws but rather badges of honour. Check out the chunks missing out of the mune of the Ishida Masamune on Markus Sesko's article (scroll down for a picture you can enlarge): https://japaneseswordlegends.wordpress.com/2015/09/30/ishida-mitsunari-and-two-masamune-less/

They made bags out of all sorts of fabrics that were no longer fit for their original use. Obi, kimono, yukata, banners... if it was cloth and sturdy enough, people would find a way to reuse it.

There's something comforting, almost meditative, about observing master artisans doing their work.

By all means, I wasn't sure if regular members could do that or if it had to be an admin. I'll be sure to remember next time.

Two of my favourite Nihonto texts are the MEIHIN KATANAEZU SHUSEI and the SOSHU DEN MEISAKU SHU - both extra-large books with large, glossy photographs of masterwork blades and filled with expert commentary. It always bothered me that there's easily found English indexes available for the former, but not the latter, so I spent a bit of my free time skimming all the notes I've been collecting over the years of using the Soshu Den Meisaku Shu as a reference and put one together. It's probably not as vital now as it would have been when I first bought the book all those years ago (thanks to the rise of things like Google Lens) but I hope someone finds it useful. If anyone notices any errors or omissions, please let me know either in here or via private message. Also, at some point I may revisit it and add more information such as blade length, smith rating and/or historical provenance. Soshu Den Meisaku-Shu - English Index.pdf

From a historical and artistic perspective, certainly. From a monetary perspective, it is a massive upgrade (or downgrade, previously, to Norishige if you prefer to see it that way).