Assistance with sayagaki

[Ray Singer]

Hi all, I just received a sword back from shinsa and would greatly appreciate assistance translating the sayagaki attached below...

 

Many thanks,

Ray

 

[Curran]

Wow. Quite a bit there, and more than half of it beyond my ability to read.

Nice "Ko-Bizen" and "Especially Precious".

 

If one of the Japanese gents don't help, you might run it against Darcy's guide on such works.

You should be able to translate it fairly fast. Harry, Markus, or George Trotter might bang it out too.

I'll be curious to read this one when someone responds.

 

That isn't Tanobe-san's handwriting. Whose writing is it?

[kunitaro]

大磨上茎ノ表裏二本阿弥光忠ノ同工極ノ金象嵌有之　

osuriage nakago no hyouhi ni honnami mitsutada no doko kiwame no kin-zogan kore-ari

 

* Kinzogan-mei by Honnami Mitsutada on both side of osuriage nakago.

 

雄勁ナル姿態ヲ呈シ地刃に沸出来ノ妙味ガ発揮サレ特二古備前ナドノ古作ヲ参酌セシ感有之

yukei naru shitai wo shimeshi ji-ba ni nie-deki no myoumi ga hakki sare tokuni ko-bizen nado no kosaku wo sanshaku seshi kan kore-ari

 

* showing strong and brave shape, charm of nie-deki is exerted which is taken into consider old-master piece like a ko-bizen

 

尚　同工ノ所伝ハ正に妥当也　珍々重々

nao, doko no shoden ha masa ni datou nari, chin-chin cho-cho

 

* furthermore, former attribution is surely positive. rare-rare, important-important.

 

 

Is this new sayagaki from Tanobe sensei ?

[Ray Singer]

Thank you both! Curran, like you I caught Ko-Bizen but was hard-pressed to imagine how that would relate to a Soshu blade. Yes, this is a new sayagaki from Tanobe-san, but there are some stylistic differences with the calligraphy from others he has done for me in the past. I had also heard that he was no longer adding Chin-Cho or Chin-Chin Cho-Cho to his recent sayagaki, but that is obviously not the case. When I return home I will take photos of the complete sayagaki and upload here...

 

- Ray

[Jacques]

Hi,

 

When I return home I will take photos of the complete sayagaki and upload here...

 

 

And sword itself please, as it will be a big change compared with what we mostly see here.

[Curran]

Kunitaro-san, thank you for that translation.

I plucked out the kin-zogan, Mitsu-tada, and a bit of the rest, but could not have worked out that second sentence.

 

Ray,

Yes, I saw from the photo that it was a Norishige and was trying to figure out why the ko-bizen line. This must be a really nice one.

Since I've lead the hurricanes away from Florida to New York for 2 years running now (and spared Miami), please humor your fellow Floridian and post at least a partial picture of this blade. Any section of the nice jigane will do, but given the description of shape.... I hope you will post the whole thing. If you don't make it to Tampa, I may need make a trip to Miami.

[Jean]

And sword itself please, as it will be a big change compared with what we mostly see here.

 

Jacques,

 

BTW, why don't you post some pictures of your swords?

[Ray Singer]

I apologize in advance for the quality of these photos. The Norishige was submitted in it's original polish, and it's been a challenge to show the quality in photos. If someone has the most recent Juyo Token Nado Zufu, and would not mind posting a scan of the oshigata, it would be much more revealing.

 

[Ray Singer]

[Ray Singer]

[Curran]

Daebak! (ask your wife for translation)

 

That is one robust looking examples. So many of the ones I've seen have been polished down quite a lot to bring out the hada.

This one looks elegant, and I wouldn't have a new polish put on it unless something wrong with it. I now understand both the nie and ko-bizen comment.

 

I didn't think it a Tanobe-san sayagaki at first. It looked like his writing with that right hand flair out on certain strokes, but he used a finer brush and wrote so much in a tighter style that I thought

it must be someone else with excellent writing style.

 

I hope this one gets displayed at Tampa.

Just wow..... I run counter to many in not loving Soshu so much, but this one is smoking beautiful.

[Ray Singer]

That is one robust looking example. So many of the ones I've seen have been polished down quite a lot to bring out the hada. This one looks elegant, and I wouldn't have a new polish put on it unless something wrong with it.

 

Thank you Curran, there are a few tiny, older hakobore but I could not see having the sword repolished and the mihaba reduced for the sake of a few minor issues (which did not seem to bother the shinsa team). It's much better to see the sword with more of its original width preserved. I will definitely be bringing this one and a few others share in Tampa...

 

- Ray

[kunitaro]

Dear Ray san,

 

I had telephone conversation with Tanobe sensei today.

so, I mentioned your Norishige. He remebers the blade with Kinzogan.

He said, he thinks that Norishige (and Masamune) were learning a lot from Old Bizen sword.

There are quite a few blade which looks devoted to ko-Bizen version by Norishige.

the sugata and the taste of hamon.

 

The sword which attributed "Norishige" is rare and important "Chin-Cho" and Good condtioned showing one of his style is "Chin-chin Cho-cho" !

[Ray Singer]

Thank you Kunitaro-san, I greatly appreciate your following up with Tanobe-san on my sword. This is the first I have heard this regarding the Ko-Bizen group being an inspiration for Norishige and Masamune. It is wonderful to have this insight from him. Most often I have heard that they were pursuing a revival of Ko-Hoki. I can see similarities in the hamon of this sword and a Ko-Aoe I own (which itself resembles Ko-Bizen) so I can understand what Tanobe-san is expressing with this comment.

 

Best regards,

Ray

[kunitaro]

You are welcome Ray san,

I am learning a lot as well !

Thank you for sharing.