Navymate Posted April 28, 2018 Report Posted April 28, 2018 Here is the second sword of the lot I mentioned in my earlier post. I don’t think much information can be gleaned from the mei on the nakago as most of the kanji are worn off and only a few can be faintly seen on one side. However, this sword has different mounts from the previous two WW2 swords I have posted and personally I think this one is much more detailed and interesting. I wasn’t able to get measurements when I took the pictures but will get them tomorrow when I stop by. That being said, this sword is the shortest of the 4 swords and with the Bo-hi, it is obviously significantly lighter and incredibly fast in the hand. It has the leather combat wrap saya. The sword appears to be in fair shape, not mint mind you as there are a couple small chips, but it seems to be a nice blade overall and it has a well made tsuba and fuchi, especially compared to the others in the lot. I don’t know if someone attempted to do a poor self polish on the blade or not but the Hamon is not as bright as the earlier blade I posted. I can see it but it’s difficult to capture on the pictures. Overall I think this sword is probably the nicest of the 4. (I will try and post the last sword tonight) I thought I would share and I might just learn something along the way. Sorry if there are too many pictures. Thanks. Quote
uwe Posted April 28, 2018 Report Posted April 28, 2018 "Yamashiro no Kami.........". The other side is a number. You can try yourself I guess.... Quote
Ray Singer Posted April 28, 2018 Report Posted April 28, 2018 There is a Fuji(wara) at the end and it appears the smith's name is entirely lost. Quote
Geraint Posted April 28, 2018 Report Posted April 28, 2018 Dear MArk. (Please add your name to your posts as we all do). You may be able to track down who the smith is from this much of the mei, or at least narrow it down a bit. The rest of the sword is a bit of an assembly job. Note the old mekugi ana in the tsuka, the odd and unassociated mixture of seppa, the leather seppa which might have been for a snap retainer, the leather scabbard cover which was for a sword with a kurikata and the odd construction of the habaki. Not sure about the tsuba but you have it in hand so have a look at the inner edges to see what there is. Time for some research. All the best. Quote
IJASWORDS Posted April 28, 2018 Report Posted April 28, 2018 I have seen an identical sword from eBay seller KOMONJO, was it one of his? Quote
Navymate Posted April 28, 2018 Author Report Posted April 28, 2018 In reply to the questions about EBay, honestly I don’t know. From what I understand an older gentleman brought in this sword along with 3 others into my friend’s store as trade on something. I spoke with the older gentleman briefly when he brought some general Nihonto information he had printed to my friend’s store while I was there. If I can I’ll ask him about where he purchased them. These have been at the store for about a month. I was under the impression the gentleman who owned these had them for some time, but I cannot say for certain. Mark Quote
Navymate Posted April 28, 2018 Author Report Posted April 28, 2018 "Yamashiro no Kami.........". The other side is a number. You can try yourself I guess.... Hahaha yes numbers are one thing I can handle ???? well sometimes at least. Thank you for helping with this. Mark Quote
Navymate Posted April 28, 2018 Author Report Posted April 28, 2018 There is a Fuji(wara) at the end and it appears the smith's name is entirely lost. Thank you again for your knowledge and help Mr. Singer. Mark Quote
Ray Singer Posted April 28, 2018 Report Posted April 28, 2018 Some options for Yamashiro (no) kami Fujiwara___ https://nihontoclub.com/view/smiths/meisearch?type=All&mei_op=contains&mei=山城守藤原 Quote
Navymate Posted April 29, 2018 Author Report Posted April 29, 2018 Dear MArk. (Please add your name to your posts as we all do). You may be able to track down who the smith is from this much of the mei, or at least narrow it down a bit. The rest of the sword is a bit of an assembly job. Note the old mekugi ana in the tsuka, the odd and unassociated mixture of seppa, the leather seppa which might have been for a snap retainer, the leather scabbard cover which was for a sword with a kurikata and the odd construction of the habaki. Not sure about the tsuba but you have it in hand so have a look at the inner edges to see what there is. Time for some research. All the best. Geraint, Thank you for the information and indicators about the unassociated mixture of seppa. These 4 swords are my first opportunity to examine a real sword in person so I appreciate you pointing out exactly what and why. While looking at this one I too thought it interesting that the fittings were not matching and also why the cheap looking seppas were present. I did get a chance to look at the tsuba briefly today and I did not see any stamps, mei or symbols on the edges (both inner and outer). It is however the most detailed design of the group. I have been looking at some information about how to help identify a sword without a mei and have been reading about the pattern of file strokes, the overall shape of the nakago and also the shape or cut of the tip of the nakago. As I’m beginning to understand better I realize the incredible depth of knowledge you all have amassed. It is amazing and quite humbling. Oh, if you thought this sword was an unassociated mix then the final sword of the bunch will make you chuckle. I’ll post pictures of that one soon. It has lots of legible kanji on the nakago. Thank you again, Mark Quote
Navymate Posted April 29, 2018 Author Report Posted April 29, 2018 Some options for Yamashiro (no) kami Fujiwara___ https://nihontoclub.com/view/smiths/meisearch?type=All&mei_op=contains&mei=山城守藤原 Thank you again sir. Incredibly helpful and generous. Quote
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