Oh Dear I've Discovered Tosogu

[Tanto54]

Dear Patrice and Pete,

 

I think that you are correct.  The one on Yahoo Japan has signs of modern (recent) investment casting.  These modern fakes are getting better and better (and may soon be difficult to identify).  There is another tsuba with waves in the thread on silver fittings that shows similar signs of modern casting - this may soon become an epidemic....

 

These "positive" bubbles that show up in the corners on modern cast copies are often caused by air bubbles that adhere to the surface of the wax copy when it is covered in the investment material before burnout and casting.  For example, if you look at the mei, there is a round "positive" bubble in the corner of one of the kanji - that wouldn't be there if it was carved instead of cast.

 

 

[parfaitelumiere]

hum I understand better now, the silver waves remeinded me something but didn't care so much about it.