Help with wakizashi please

[jamesicus]

I haven't posted anything substantive here for quite awhile, but here I go asking for help from this community. Some may remember my early postings wherein I reported that I first became interested in Nihontô in 1960 when I lived in Japan and assembled a small collection of blades and fittings. There were only two "Nihontô books" written in English available in Japan at that time - and no Internet - so detailed research was very difficult for collectors and enthusiasts like me. Just about all the reliable information I gleaned relating to Nihontô was as a result of visiting Tokyo sword shops and the National Museum.

 

I have once again assembled a small collection of Nihontô (after a lengthy hiatus) and am deriving a great deal of pleasure in studying, researching and caring for them. I have spent the greater part of the past two years reading and studying (and re-studying) such books as "The Connoisseur's Book of Japanese Swords" (Kokan Nagayama) - and many other other standard references. Now I am attempting to learn how to "kantei" my swords - but I have found that to be difficult for I don't have the depth of knowledge and experience possessed by most members of this Forum.

 

There are no rare or exceptional items in my present collection, just representative examples that I cherish and enjoy. I have purchased all of my blades from well know Nihontô purveyors and collectors, including a member of this Forum.

 

My photographic skills are very limited and I apologize for the lack of sharp detail in some of the images I have posted. I have found photographing Nihontô to be a very daunting task - the reflections from the highly polished blade surface is especially bothersome to me. Because of that problem, I have posted some pairs of images that are very similar to each other in the belief that there are photographic blemishes in one or the other (due to reflections, improper angle, stray background fabric strands, etc.) that are distorting features of the blade.

 

Now to my request for help - to include corrections, additions, observations - and any other input, for which I will be most grateful:

 

I am attempting to "kantei" the following Wakazashi blade (in koshirae) and here is what I have come up with so far:

 

1. It is mumei

 

2. I believe it is ubu

 

3. The nagasa is 40.80 cm.

 

4. The mihaba is 3.2 cm. (it is a "meaty" blade, but I have not measured the kokasane)

 

5. Sori (not measured)

 

6. Suguta is shinogi zukuri

 

7. ihore mune

 

8. Two mekugi ana

 

9. Okissaki

 

10. Jihada is very tight itame

 

11. Hamon is gunome midare ? - I have difficulty determining this.

 

12. Sword period (of manufacture) ?

 

13. School: (kaji) ?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

James

[cabowen]

How about a picture of the mune-machi so we can see the thickness of the blade and the nakago? That will help determine its polishing history.

 

Do you think the nakago has been cleaned at all?

 

Hamon looks like a gunome-midare. Are there any activities within?

 

 

Based on the hada and the color of the patina on the nakago, I would be tempted to say shinshinto.

 

For school, based on the hamon and shape, I would start with something Seki related, like Echizen or maybe Owari. The shape is common to Satsuma shinshinto but there should be lots of nie and imozuru if that is the case....

[jamesicus]

Thank you.

 

How about a picture of the mune-machi so we can see the thickness of the blade and the nakago? That will help determine its polishing history ...........

I will do that tomorrow.

 

.......... Do you think the nakago has been cleaned at all? ..........

I don't know - probably

 

.......... Hamon looks like a gunome-midare. Are there any activities within? ..........

I think so - I will take close-up photos tomorrow. I believe there is nioi/nie attending the hamon - nie/nioi-deki ? but I do not know how to assess that.

 

 

.......... Based on the hada and the color of the patina on the nakago, I would be tempted to say shinshinto ...........

Noted - thank you.

 

.......... For school, based on the hamon and shape, I would start with something Seki related, like Echizen or maybe Owari. The shape is common to Satsuma shinshinto but there should be lots of nie and imozuru if that is the case ......

Again, thank you and noted.

 

EDIT: I forgot (happens to me quite frequently these days) that we have family birthday celebrations and activities tomorrow and Saturday and I am set-up for a flea market on Sunday. I am informed by my darling wife that photography is out until Monday.

 

James

[nagamaki - Franco]

I believe there is nioi/nie attending the hamon - nie/nioi-deki ? but I do not know how to assess that. James

 

http://www.ricecracker.com/info/hamon.htm ,

Nie and nioi can be determined under natural lighting once you understand what you're looking for. In addition exposing the Hamon especially to quartz halogen lighting as it brings out fine detail, or incandecent lighting placed from a position above and behind the eye and the sword surface.

[jamesicus]

 

http://www.ricecracker.com/info/hamon.htm ,

Nie and nioi can be determined under natural lighting once you understand what you're looking for. In addition exposing the Hamon especially to quartz halogen lighting as it brings out fine detail, or incandecent lighting placed from a position above and behind the eye and the sword surface.

Thank you. I thought I had a good understanding of nie and nioi until I read Nagayama - now that I have been introduced to things like nie/nioi deki I realize I actually know very little.

 

James

[jamesicus]

Please excuse the delay in posting a pic of the mune machi -- I was under the weather most of yesterday.

 

 

After further examination (and based on the expert guidance offered here) I believe the hamon exhibits nioi-deki. There is no other activity I can discern in the hamon. The jihada is very tight grain. The nakago has certainly been cleaned.

 

I didn't expect much of this blade - I really wanted to test my neophyte kantei skills IAW Nagayama. I actually bought this sword because of the tosogu which is to my liking.

 

James