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Battle scar?


Lindus

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I suspect that at some time we have a cut mark on a blade that we would like to believe is from a battle or even better a duel.

This on a blade signed Shinano no kami Minamoto Nobuyoshi,earlier know as the 666 blade :( .

 

Not that this adds any value to a blade,in this case it is just one of several annoying distractions.

post-1746-14196876805371_thumb.jpg

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I have a wakizashi that has this mark as well, it will not decrease the value of the blade as far as i know.

 

Yours seem like it could be an accidental block? since it is at the very end, i don't see how this could have been done without the wielder stretching his arms in an awkward fashion.

 

Is this a kitae ware i see on the mune?

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Thanks for the thoughts Gentlemen.

The sword was in a terrible condition when I acquired it,could see nothing due to the rust condition. When it came back from the polisher the cut and other flaws were then obvious so if indeed it was made to infer the flaw was caused by the cut,it was done way back in its history.

Question,why would that have been done?. Cannot see the reasoning behind it.

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Impossible, Alex.

 

Samurai were the only people allowed to use a sword and they had to do ten years in the dojo before being allowed a live blade.

Their strict adherence to the rules of Bushido meant they could only fight face to face against one other Samurai in perfect conditions, preferably in the dojo, but on a deserted beach was allowed on occasion.

So, any scenario where this could happen, couldn't happen.

Honest.

 

:|

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As I said in my first post, it could be an "accidental" block whilst on the battlefield but I dont know, it is kind of rare to see such things, more likely that it was faked as mentioned before, but choose to believe what you want, because it does no difference, it is still an oddly placed block on a ware.

 

I highly doubt that a hit on a sword would be able to open a such a huge ware in the mune, metal does not work that way.

 

regards,

 

edit: by all mean, do not let this stop you from cherishing your sword, its just wild speculation in any case.

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Impossible, Alex.

 

Samurai were the only people allowed to use a sword and they had to do ten years in the dojo before being allowed a live blade.

Their strict adherence to the rules of Bushido meant they could only fight face to face against one other Samurai in perfect conditions, preferably in the dojo, but on a deserted beach was allowed on occasion.

So, any scenario where this could happen, couldn't happen.

Honest.

 

:|

 

 

I don't think this is necessarily true, Samurai were given their first real swords as children, to wear a katana/daisho was a birthright, not really something that required training (I can't count how many times I've read of elder Edo period Samurai despairing over the lack of attention paid to the military arts, in favor of poetry and calligraphy, as well as simple bureaucratic jobs.) There were also edicts prohibiting duels and cutting down the "lower classes" sometimes done by drunken Samurai when their form probably wasn't at it's best. More importantly I would imagine real sword fighting is a lot different than what would be learned in the dojo anyway, where the importance of perfecting skills and forms is to be completely familiar with your weapon, but in a real fight it is much more chaotic and messy and wouldn't be using the same exact movements during combat. (hate to say it as it's probably going to be taken as an overly crude example but the difference in training and a real fight is probably similar to seeing martial artists training and then seeing them fight in MMA)

 

from my understanding the Code of Bushido, much ike the European Knight's Code of chivalry, was either something to aspire to but never truly followed to the letter by most or something romanicized by later generations.

 

All that being said the opening does looks like it was probably a stress crack or welding flaw that formed during forging/hardening of the blade, might not even have been visible when originally made but became exposed due to polishing over the years. Plus since Shinano Nobuyoshi(s) worked during the relatively peaceful Edo period the likelihood of being involved in any pitched battle is rather small.

 

Regards,

Lance

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Lee, my man. You forget that the samurai concept was to evolve after the Taiho system was established and what we may consider Samurai really was not fully formed until the 9th, 10th century. Prior to that conscription was the norm and a form of it existed thereafter in arming farmers at times as auxillary ashigaru. I will not get too involved in this debate, but, also consider armed monks, ie. Ikko Ikki etc.. armed merchants and their guards, Ainu, Ryukyu Is. natives and criminals of course. They were armed as well. As to the horrible practice of cutting down the lower classes 辻斬り or (切り得 kiridoku); it wasn't only drunken samurai involved in this and fairly rare in any case. John

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Well said John,would guess that in a situation all the rules of combat go right down the drain. hacking your enemy in any fashion possible to stay alive would seem the norm.

Still ask the question as to why on a fairly ordinary sword would,as has been suggested,a cut be placed above the flaw to infer that it caused that flaw?. After all even in its day it would not of been of any great value.

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:D

Chaps...I realise I'm no comedian and that sarcasm does not translate well into the written word but I did think my post was fairly obvious.

I was trying to counter the opinion that this cut in Roy's sword could not be a kirikomi due to the fact that that's not how it's done in sword fighting/parrying.

There are a multitude of scenarios where it could happen.

 

Is it a kirikomi? :dunno:

Is it a welding flaw? :dunno:

Doesn't really look like either from the picture and we could speculate all day long on what it is or isn't.

Is it an 'annoying distraction', like Roy says. Yep.

And probably what most readers think about me by now...

;)

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