Help With Mei On 1943 Kai-Gunto Please!

[Bruce Pennington]

Just got this gorgeous Kai-gunto. I can read the date: 1943, but need help with the mei. Has a Seki stamp, but no Arsenal stamp. Is that normal?

 

I'm also puzzled by the back end of the nakago, as it seems crudely chopped off. Also the sarute seems too skinny, it's the right color and seems to have wear where the tassel would have been, but it's skinnier than my army sarute.

 

Lots of pics here: http://i410.photobucket.com/albums/pp189/Bruce_Pennington/1943%20Kai-gunto/image_zpsr3xbvg6s.jpeg, but I'll post a couple too!

[David Flynn]

Nagashige. What do you mean by, it has a Seki stamp but not an arsenal stamp?  If you mean it doesn't have an anchor stamp, that's because it's not anti-rust.

[Mark]

i would suggest Yoshishige.  Sword looks ok, Not early so quality was lower at times

[SwordGuyJoe]

2x for Yoshishige

[Bruce Pennington]

Thanks guys!

 

David, I'm not very read-up on the Kai-guntos, so I never caught the fact that the anchor stamps only were found on the stainless blades. Thanks for the info!

 

Any thoughts on the chopped nakago?

 

Blade length: Tip to mune - 24 1/4in; full length - 32 1/2in; in koshirae - 38in.

[David Flynn]

Hard to tell from the photo, but probably ubu.  Also, I'll go along with the others, Yoshishige.

[Ed]

While the top part of Naga looks odd/backwards, I still think it Naga opposed to Yoshi.  Maybe whoever cut it was dyslexic.

There are several characters for Yoshi but none look close to me.

 

[SwordGuyJoe]

Its the same yoshi kanji as Yoshichika

 

http://www.japaneseswordindex.com/oshigata/yoschika.jpg

[Mark]

i think it is the Yoshi kanji below (from a book, different smith same kanji), it is not common but you see it at times. I do not know how to put the kanji in the text here so just posted the picture

 

EDIT : i see Joe beat me to it

[SteveM]

Another Yoshishige here; 

http://www.samuraishokai.jp/sword/14123.html

[Ed]

I agree completely, that is it. I stand corrected.  I knew it looked odd for Naga, yet I didn't recall that particular kanji for Yoshi.       

[mauser99]

that small seki stamp is the arsenal stamp.  Its much harder to find one of these without a stainless blade. I have one of each.

[SwordGuyJoe]

I agree completely, that is it. I stand corrected. I knew it looked odd for Naga, yet I didn't recall that particular kanji for Yoshi.

I am pretty sure this is a sign of the apocalypse, as Ed has forgotten more about swords than I'm ever likely to learn.

[Ed]

Ha, I wish that were true.  Sounds good though.