Hector

Lennon, you sure seem to be going all-in for a 15-year-old. BTW, I'm not being sarcastic or condescending - I'm just impressed you're getting into the hobby at that age! Edit: Wow! I just saw your first post was from exactly 2 years ago - so you actually got into all this age 13! 😮

TBH, the fuchi and menuki look like Chinese produced sword furniture to me.

My advice? Don't go there. You've got two historically significant artefacts. I would refix the cap, find a World War II period seppa online (not as difficult as it first sounds) and get the hilt professionally re-wrapped. If you get modern fittings, it will cost you an arm and a leg just to get the basic woodwork done - the likelihood of anything fitting off the shelf is very small. Plus, most modern fittings look cheap or tacky unless you go really high end. Seriously, I would restore what you have there. Best, Hector

It's interesting you say that because the old gentleman I was talking to was laughing about a rich foreigner who started spending a lot with Aoi and similar dealers a few years back without any real knowledge of what they were buying. They were treated fairly and honestly but apparently turned nasty when they realised they weren't getting any national treasures they could boast about. Caveat emptor.

I know we all want to display the things we love but these cases strike me as ringing a dinner bell for burglars and other opportunistic bottom dwellers. My wife's parents store the family swords in a safe that looks like something out of a bank heist movie!

As a novice who nearly got stung recently because of lack of experience, a member here advised that I visit some mid-level dealers as I live in Yokohama. I did just that and have just started to get a feel for what is available, who is most helpful etc. In one shop, I made the acquaintance of an elderly Japanese gentleman who has been collecting for 55 years and who very kindly took me for a cup of coffee to continue our chat. We eventually moved on to who are the best dealers and Aoi Art came up. My new friend said that they are good if you know exactly what you are looking for and can easily spot flaws or swapped-out koshirae. Interestingly, he also added that no collector with extremely high end pieces would commission Aoi to sell them on their behalf. Instead, they would use a network of very serious collectors - predominantly Japanese, occasionally foreign - who always get first pick of 'the best'. Therefore, from this comment, I would be suspicious of how Aoi suddenly have a Masamune-den piece in which they have not themselves invested a new polish and Juyo submission.

Hi Christine, It all sounds very confusing at first but try to bear with it! 🙂 Your grandfather's sword looks very interesting and the fact it has pieces missing off the handguard suggests damage incurred when the machine gun nest was taken. (Maybe a grenade?) Anyhow, what you're being asked to do here is look for a little wooden peg that goes through the handle. (It's usually a couple of cm above the hand guard.) Knock that out with a chopstick and a hammer and then try to remove the handle from the blade. Be very careful not to cut yourself as you're doing this! I'd suggest rolling a fresh towel around the naked blade and gaff-taping it to hold it in place. If the handle doesn't come off easily, try tapping the handguard with a wooden hammer if you have one. Once the handle is removed, take off the other bits and pieces (the handguard, two or more washers and the little wedge shaped piece of metal on the other side of the guard). Then, try to take a photo of any writing you see chiselled onto the tang (the metal part that was previously hidden by the handle) and also one big photo of the whole naked blade, point upwards. Hope this helps! 😊 Best, Hector

@John C and @Scogg - both requests noted. I'll look as soon as it arrives (it's coming from a little old bookshop way out in the boonies). Best, Hector

Hi George, Sorry for the late response - I only sign in around every three days or so to see what's going on. 😁 The seller didn't indicate the number of pages and I'm still waiting to receive it. If it's too delicate to scan without breaking the spine, then I'm planning to very carefully hold it open and photograph each page in turn - if that is an acceptable alternative to everyone? Incidentally, on the same day I was lucky enough to get hold of a nice copy of your own 1989 title 'Japanese Swords and Fittings in the Western Australian Museum'! An excellent read but heartbreaking to see so many amazing blades out of polish. Best, Hector

That's the logical explanation I was hoping for Dale! 😁👍 I think the whole 'ninja' grift comes from the word 'shinobi' (忍者) written on the box lid (if I'm reading it right). Best, Hector

Scratch this. Found a couple of variations which work fine.

I picked this up online a day ago and I'll add more pictures when I receive it. Should be quite illuminating I hope, as it shows work by the first generation of post WWII smiths exhibiting their best blades just four years after the swordmaking ban was lifted. Described as: [Illustrated] New Sword Exhibition Catalog Japan Sword Association Cultural Property Protection Committee Japan Art Sword Preservation Association Showa 32

This tsuba is currently for sale on the Japanese Yahoo Auction website. If my translation is correct, the seller claims it to be some kind of ninja artefact. What it actually is, I leave to the experts here. https://auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/l1208828191

Will do - thank you.

Please start your own thread rather than hijacking mine.

Thanks Geraint - you helped me dodge a bullet there for sure! 😳 I obviously have a lot more to learn. One explanation in defense of my poor judgement; the blade has been this shape long enough to have an aged looking shirasaya and specially shaped habaki - but I guess any dealer could organize those in order to 'legitimize' the overall appearance.

Hi, My Japanese wife's family has some swords but they are all going to her older brother. 🙄 Shame as there are some interesting pieces. So, I'm newly retired with an itch to scratch and have started looking to pick up one or two more unusual items for myself - and this mumei wakizashi caught my eye. I very much like the asymmetrical style of the blade with one side hira-zukuri and the other shobu-zukuri. Unfortunately, it seems very tired with what I assume are patches of shingane showing through on the shobu-zukuri side and lots of laminar separation on the hira-zekuri side. However, I'm still tempted so I'd value any opinions. Thanks, Hector C

Hi, If this belongs in the Tosogu section then please move it! I wondered if anyone could advise me how to tie a tacoashi (octopus leg) sageo on a tanto? I've tried all the conventional knots but, because of the 'pyramid' weave, it just doesn't lay correctly. Many thanks, Hector C.

Very true - there are some real dumb folk searching eBay, with no idea what they're looking at.

Thank you Dale! Do you have any idea how these tsuba should be mounted? (At a guess, I'd think the hitsu-ana positions are probably more important than the signature. Although, in the case of my tsuba, the side with the mei is also definitely more decorated and therefore more likely to be considered the omote.)

Hi, I would appreciate some more advice if that's okay? I have very simple tsuba where either the (unknown) mei is on the ura side rather than the omote or the hitsu-ana are the wrong way round. With the mei facing upward, the kogai hitsu-ana is on the left and the kozuka hitsu-ana is on the right - a mirror position to the norm, I believe? So, could the mei have been positioned underneath on some occasions? Thanks. Hector C

Very interesting - I wasn't aware of that family tradition. I had managed to semi-understand the Samon(ji) reference and nearly fell for it as the tanto in the auction does look like it's modelled on Sa. (Blade in question on far left with two Sa blades for comparison.) However, it now looks like the inscription in the lid is a counterfeit add-on. That would explain the missing character and mixing up a tachi with a tanto.

Sorry .... Hisako. 🤦🏻 Possibly part of a wedding trousseau?

Dear Mr. Moriyama, I really appreciate your assistance. I was using translation software but something seemed 'off' about this. I think the Tanto was actually made for someone called Hiroko? Thanks again, Hector

Hi, I was hoping for some help on an inscription inside the lid of a box for a modern tanto. i think it has the smith's name, some awards he won and some other details i just can't decipher. Thanking you in advance. Hector C