Jwizz

AHHH! Why do i love rats so much?! I may need to take out a personal loan! https://www.jauce.com/auction/n1185137

All VERY nice pieces, ^ this thing is of nightmares and I love it haha I found a couple interesting nezumi bits in the wild recently: This I found out is a replica. although I'm having trouble finding the original, it's a very pretty design. This Rat fuchi though

Oh that's a very nice rat tsuba!! I especially adore the mother rat. Parent wildlife themes are surprisingly more common than I expected

That is a shame, i think i will experiment with the saya at least. will give me a decent project and hopefully a more respectful resting place for the blade and perhaps I'll look into getting the tsuka rebound. Thankyou again, Colin, for all your assistance and words of wisdom / affirmation.

Thankyou, I got it for around 500usd and am rather fond of it. Imho for me, it's a perfect introductory piece I was hoping to learn as much as possible about it but having a bit of mystery isn't an issue at all. Makes me wonder where it's been/what it's seen. I didn't intend on getting it polished, perhaps in the future i will. The koshirae like you said, doesn't fit very well. How difficult do you think it'd be to find koshirae that would be a better fit?

Measurements;- - Nagasa: 20cm / 8 inches - Nakago: 9.5cm / 3.74 inches A few more detailed photos. (I hope) I will also add, it isn't sharp at all. Thanks again for any help, comments and or insight.

Yes, I believe so

Thanks heaps, Jake! It was love at first sight haha, I have had so much fun learning about it too. So I'm glad y'all enjoy it! And look forward to finding more rat/mouse designs for my collection. As for your guess; I feel like you maybe onto something. Especially considering @Spartancrest's comparison. Such elegant use of contrast and empty space on both pieces. Thanks a lot to everyone for their insights and comments!

May I ask what gives you this impression?

It is honestly a lot more glossy/reflective than what I was expecting. (Unsure if that's good or bad) It seems to have a bit of iridescence, I assume due to being overly oiled perhaps?

20cm / 8inch

Thankyou all for your insight! I am very excited to have my own nihonto to study and clearly have A LOT to learn! I will try to post more detailed photos/measurements later today.

Hello all, I received this Mumei Tanto today! It was listed as "old koto era" I want to believe it to be authentic BUT I don't know a lot about much, so ANY help identifying anything about the blade will be greatly appreciated! Taking photos were ALOT harder than i imagined they would be, so, my apologies for the lack of detail in the images. Thanks, Justin.

Ooh, so now 3 of the Takarabune symbols! After looking up what you said, it appears the "shells" are hoju'no-tama / wish granting jewels!! Daikoku-ten's mallet is reputed to have one of these inside Quite the lucky Tsuba ! I wasn't expecting so much symbolism and am pleasantly surprised

Thankyou Dale! Your reply has honestly made me so much more excited for my purchase!! Time to do some research on the seven lucky gods and the Takarabune. It was an eBay purchase! About 150usd including postage (I hope that's a decent price) either way I'm happy ! Other side is also a tad rusty with these little .. shells?