watsonmil

Dear Ed, Would'nt it be a breath of fresh air to have such a President again. I am Canadian, ... but have always been a great admirer of Mr. Jefferson. You are a lucky people to have had such a leader, ... wish the same were true today. ... Ron Watson

Dear Fred, Best of luck, ... although I don't think you'll need luck, ... all you really need is to speak with someone with authority ( supervisor ), ... YOU and your Congress Man. Keep us posted. ... Ron Watson

Dear Fred, " God bless us, and where we are going! " Short and sweet : TO HELL IN A HANDBASKET ! If they are located in the same city as where you live or have an office there, ... I would go down and speak to them in person. I do not believe that Stingray ( same ) is on any endangered list. It certainly is not on the CITIES endangered list which I believe is what the US Fish & Wildlife use as a bench mark. Even the IUCN ( International Union for the Conservation of Nature ) which I believe do not have any authority other than as a tree hugging organization which tries to influence governments lists only the following as endangered : Ganges Stinray, Marbled Stingray, Mekong Stingray, and the Thorny Freshwater Stingray. Do some Google Research and print out the information you need to back your case. If nothing else go to your Congress Man and demand his/her involvement. The US Fish & Wildlife Service are on about the same level as BATF, .... a bunch of KEYSTONE COPS with nothing better to do than harass honest people because they are to F'ing incompetent to catch real criminals. By the way I got that from a friend who worked in the White House. First be consiliatory, ... if that fails go for their throat with your Congress Man representative. ... Ron Watson

Dear Stephen, You are MUCH too modest. The bird, and mouse show up quite nicely and clear. You may be justifyably be proud of that sword. Thank you for sharing the photographs. ... Ron Watson

Dear Anthony, I concur entirely with Ian on this Matchlock. Most likely Burmese ... definitely not Japanese. ... Ron Watson

Dear Thomas, I have had my share of good fortune ( luck ) in the collecting of Swords and other Samurai accruements, .... but a Katana of that quality for $ 89.00 is unbelievable. Congratulations are in order from not only me but from every single NMB Member. You are most fortunate indeed. I am very happy for you ! ... Ron Watson

Dear Justin, Probably the split is somewhere around 60 - 70 % outside Main Spring mechanism, and 30 - 40 % inside Main Spring mechanism. In my own case ( collection ) it runs 50 / 50. There also seems to be preferences by school. For instance Satsuma, and Hizen guns seem to be for the most part inside spring locks, ... whereas in the Kunitomo school we see both types used. I have also noticed that Kishu, and Bizen Guns have a preference for Outside Spring Locks. Piers what's your opinion on this ? ... Ron Watson

Dear Piers, That is a new one on me, .... I have never seen a gunsmith signature with such a placement previously. Just when you think you know it all ( well most all ), ... along comes a new learning experience ! I would still like you to check the bottom of that barrel however, ... and post some additional photographs. ... Ron Watson

Dear David, Japanese Matchlocks are universaly signed on the bottom of the barrel ( if signed at all ), ... although I am far from being an expert on kanji, ... I suspect it is an owners name or mark. Have you taken the gun apart to see if it bears a signature on the bottom of the barrel ? Also an overall picture of the gun would be much appreciated. ... Ron Watson

Dear Mark, That is WONDERFUL news, ... I once TRIED to lose a son, .... sadly he kept turning up, and keeps turning up ! ... Ron Watson

Dear Piers, Not exactly a Dutch Cannon . I find the wheels add NOTHING to the little teppo, ... and as a netsuke would be more of a hinderence ( getting caught in the Obi ). I also note the wheels do not even look contemporary to the work on the netsuke. Are you sure they belong to this netsuke ?? ... Ron Watson

PLEASE, .... there I said it too !! ... Ron Watson

OK, then it's a rectal thermometer ! ... Ron Watson

Dear Piers, It's a PEN or PENCIL or BRUSH ! ... Ron Watson

Dear Sir, 1. Kindly sign your name as per the forum rules. 2. Unlike the USA, ... private ownership of firearms in Japan is for the most part prohibited, ... and without the holster the pistol will have considerably less value both monetarily or historically. If you are not interested in the pistol and holster there are plenty of collectors in the USA who would treasure them ( together ). ... Ron Watson

Dear Henk, Actually, ... Pier's insight, accumulations, knowledge of history, if added all together go much, much further than the Teppo or Cannon we have been discussing. He is OUR MAN on site, ... living the culture, ... working among the people. I am only too thankful he is not: " a one tracked mind " ( NIHONTO ). Even though this is primarily a nihonto forum, .... there is so much more to the Samurai Era than Sword Schools. Lets be thankful for what little respite we may get from the everyday postings of WWII Guntos, Tired O-Suriage Tachi, ... Chinese fakes, my God even Butcher Knives of late. I for one look forward to seeing his Kempi/MP Brassard, and Stone Print. " This Week's Edo Period Corner " is MY FAVORITE and I can see it is becoming a favorite of yours if I read you correctly. ... Ron Watson

Dear All, For those of us unable to attend the Tampa Show, ... it would be most welcome to see some photographs posted of the weekend's fun, treasures, and participants. ... Ron Watson

Dear Piers, Alcoholic beverages and scientific discussion rarely go together, .... With respect to the photo provided by Eric ( cannon # 1 ), .... let me quote a passage from a well respected author on Japanese Firearms speaking specifically on the campaigns in Korea : " What the Koreans did have was a rather inefficient form of light artillery, which they had learned about from the Chinese. This the Japanese gunners outshot with no trouble at all, meanwhile devastating the Korean archers. It was an ideal war. They took particular pleasure in capturing the little Korean cannon, and General Kato Kiyomasa sent them home by the dozen as souvenirs. They are just over two feet long and at infrequent intervals, fire a sort of large marble. " Sounds much like the barrel Eric pictures, although we shall never know. Dealing with the disappearance of pre-Edo firearms I previously stated that most ended up in Korea, and I back that up with yet a further .... later in the Korean campaign quote : " The Japanese were now heavily outnumbered, and beginning to face serious resistance. The idea of guns for the whole army began to look very attractive to some of the commanders. A couple of letters written home from Korea in the 1590's reveal their view rather clearly. One was written in 1592 by a provincial lord who had gone over with approximately 1500 archers, 1500 gunners, and 300 spearmen. He wanted to change the ratio. Please arrange to send us guns and ammunition. he wrote to his stewart. There is absolutely no need for spears. " The other letter written by a Japanese nobleman named Asano who was holding Yol-San Castle against a much larger force of Koreans and Chinese wrote his father to arrange for replacements. " Have them bring as many guns as possible, for no other equipment is needed, Give strict orders that all men, even the samurai carry guns . " So between Hideyoshi's confiscations, ... and the Korean campaign, ... I think the answer to the disappearance of pre-Edo firearms is adequately answered. I am sure the occasional worn out Tanegashima found it's way into the hands of Mining Tool makers, ... or Cabinet makers, .... but to account for the disappearance of literally thousands of pre-Edo firearms, I think the campaigns in Korea which are recorded in having used up thousands upon thousands of pre-Edo firearms far out-weighed the recycle attributes of the Japanese. The Japanese version of " Beating Swords into Plowshares ". Perhaps if more material were translated from knowledable European cronicallers and students into the Japanese language such silly round the beer ( excuse me Sake ) table dialogue would be recognized for what it is .... rubbish and relagated to the pot. ... Ron Watson

Dear Peter, You must remember that Oda Nobunaga ordered his army's guns, ... therefore most probably of uniform caliber. It was only later ( I'm sure exceptions exist but generally ) in the Tokugawa era that INDIVIDUAL Samurai ordered guns on a private purchase basis, ... giving us the great varience in caliber and style of the firearm, and thus the individual requirement for owning your own bullet mold, powder flask, and other accruments. ONLY relatively wealthy Samurai could afford firearms, ... and the lowly Ashigaru was relagated to the Lord's arsenal of standard firearms. The later Edo era firearms were more for show, and target practice than for actual combat ( the wars had pretty much ended ). Virtually every firearm I have examined over a great many years have been of the Edo period. There was a discussion earlier as to where all the pre-Edo firearms disappeared to, ... the answer is simple, ... KOREA. Hideyoshi's Invasion armies wrote countless letters home asking for more firearms. I am quite sure that Korea took up the majority of pre-Edo firearms rather than simple loss or destruction, or collection by the authorities. ... Ron Watson PS. Eric is quite correct in stating that the NMB is the greatest resource for information on the Tanegashima in the English language. Brian ( the BOSS ) and other interested members should justifyably be VERY proud of this fact.

Dear Eric, Although I am not 100 % convinced, ... I am going to stick my neck out and say that the first cannon you posted may well be genuine. Whether it is Japanese or Korean I do not know, ... but I lean strongly towards Japanese. The sights are a little strange, .. but what is not strange about Japanese guns ?? I base my conclusions on the overall appearance, and very convincing patina of the wood and metal fittings. Notice the slightly rounded ( worn ) and discoloured morticed pegs, ... also what appear to be age cracks in the wood, ... the small chip out of the one end side of the carriage ( your last photograph of this gun ). Next the colouration ( and differences in colouration of the metal bands running over the top and down the up-right wooden mount. This subtle difference in PATINA is very difficult to fake convincingly. Again the subtle differences in the patina of the wood is most convincing. Notice also one of the round top nails is dinted and again the subtle differences in patina are most convincing inside the dent. I personally can find NO outstanding feature that screams FAKE. This might change dramatically if examined in person however. If this is a fake it is very well done. As for the second set of photographs ( 2nd cannon with the modern carriage ), ... the sharpness of the casting, and overall patina give it the appearance of a newly created piece. It is much easier to off handedly shout " fake " as in the case of your first cannon than to examine all parts with an eye to how woods and metal react to real age as compared to artificially aging an object. I would be interested in hearing critisisms of my findings from other members. ... Ron Watson

Dear Peter, I for one would love to see photos of your Matchlock collection. I hope you will indulge us. ... Ron Watson

Dear Peter, The general consensus is that the gun first arrived in Japan in the year 1543 aboard a Chinese cargo ship. Aboard were three Portuguese, two of whom possessed Matchlock Muskets. to make a long story short, the guns were purchased by Lord Tokitaka the feudal lord of Tanegashima. Lord Tokitaka subsequently ordered his chief Swordsmith to duplicate the guns. Within a decade swordsmiths ( gunsmiths ) were producing guns across the breadth of Japan. The gun ( Tanegashima or Teppo as they became known ) was first ordered in quantity by Lord Oda Nobunaga in 1549 ( 500 firearms ). It can be assumed that firearms were being used in Feudal in-fighting from this period on ( supposedly the Warlord Takeda Shingen was killed by a bullet in the year 1572 ) culminating in the famous Battle of Nagashino in 1575 where Volley Fire was used under the direction of Oda Nobunaga to great effect upon the Takeda. The great advantage of the gun over the bow was the fact that a lowly Ashigaru ( foot soldier ) could be taught to operate a firearm in a very short period of time in contrast to the Bowman who required months if not years of practise to become competent. The rate of fire would of course vary from individual to individual and their respective training. Generally speaking European Musket men were capable of firing 2 shots per minute ( Flintlock ). The Matchlock being slightly more awkward would probably be about 1 1/2 shots per minute. I personally know of no records as to the amount of ammunition carried by each man ( but I would assume no more than about 20 shots ). The operational management of the gunner's ammunition would have been relegated to A Samurai in charge of between 5 and 10 Ashigaru. He would have been in charge of the handling of ball and powder in quantity and match for his group as well as discipline such as giving order to fire. Now then, the number of English language books on the subject of the Japanese Matchlock is small indeed. Examples which come to mind : The Japanese Matchlock ( A Story of the Tanegashima ) by Shigeo Sugawa, ..... Giving Up the Gun by Noel Perrin, ..... The Gun Collector ( Sept. 1950 issue ). Even the number of current books in Japanese is somewhat small and often as not full of errors. You see The Japanese have something of an adversion to firearms in general and consequently few collectors to justify publications. I am sure Piers, Ian Bottomley can add to my brief address to your question. In addition, a search of the NMB will bring to your attention a great deal of information. ... Ron Watson

Dear Piers, I must reluctantly admit defeat in our latest Tanegashima debate, ... the off set trigger is more for touching off the gun from the side rather from the more normal position of being somewhat behind and holding up the gun. This one piece of evidence has me more inclined to believe in the wheeled carriage ( rope tie down ) version depicted in the old Gunnery Books. Note also the hole through the trigger ( possibly for the attachment of a firing laynard ). ! VERY WELL DONE Piers ! I have indeed learned much tonight thanks to you . ... Ron Watson

Dear Piers, I had not previously seen the book you took the pictures from, ... Perhaps it is I who overstepped the mark ( somewhat ) . The photograph never the less gives an incorrect impression. Perhaps if your collector friend tied a bunch of rope around the gun and carriage he would come closer to the ARTISTS impression of how these monster O-Zutsu were employed. I am yet to be convinced. ... Ron Watson

Dear Piers, No need to hunt up the prints, ... I have a book showing Japanese CANNON mounted on wheels, .... but CANNONS not heavy hand operated guns. It must have taken a Hericulan Japanese man to have simply carried that monster let alone press the trigger ! My criticism was simply directed at the incorrectness of the mounting. Few of the NMB members have experience with any type of firearm little lone the complexities of the Japanese Tanegashima. We must be very careful in desiminating accurate information. Too many people take a picture as proof or as a true example of how things were used or put together. :D ... Ron Watson