Shortened Wakizashi

[TomMcRei]

I would like to get some opinions about this sword from experienced collectors on NMB.

Total length is 88 cm

Saya 65,5cm,

Tsuka 21,5cm

Blade 55,5 cm from kissaki to tsuba.

Nakago looks like has been shortened and redrilled. Was it a katana before? Is it a common practice? What was the purpose? Some king of damage?

Polish doesn`t look like it was done recently.

I am curious about this sword, what is the value of this kind of wakizashi? How old it could be?

 

Click twice on picture for better resolution.

 

 

[Shugyosha]

Hi Tom,

 

It looks like this is a shortened katana but might have been on the cusp between katana and wakizashi length - the distance between the two holes in the tang is a clue to how much has been taken away. 
 

Age wise I think this is mid 1600s as the shape looks like that which came into vogue around Kanbun, the era that started in 1661. Back to the reason for shortening, pre-1600 it was likely to be because of battle damage but after 1630 there were no battles so it’s a question of conjecture. It might have been damaged in a fight and so shortened or it might be that the owner needed a short blade and so cut down a katana. 
 

It looks like a well made blade with no obvious flaws beyond some fine scratches. That said, it’s probably not made by a significant smith as I think it probably wouldn’t have been shortened without some effort to preserve the signature and the value that would attach to it. I can’t identify the lone kanji that might give a clue to the maker. 
 

The fittings look to be mostly utilitarian though not unattractive. The lacquer work on the scabbard is very attractive, however, and some effort has been put into it. My feeling price wise is $1,200 to $1,500 (you may get different views on this) but you can have a look around for similar items to get a better feeling for value. 
 

What’s the asking price (if you’re looking to buy)?

[Mister Gunto]

Shortening of blades was very common. 

 

And I love the koshirae on this one! 

[Ken-Hawaii]

If you want comments on a blade, you need to show the entire bare blade, Tony. That's how sugata determines jidai.

 

It's a wakizashi, with nice koshirae, & the rule of thumb is that a wakizashi is valued at half that of an equivalent katana.

[Dave R]

7 hours ago, Ken-Hawaii said:

If you want comments on a blade, you need to show the entire bare blade, Tony. That's how sugata determines jidai.

 

It's a wakizashi, with nice koshirae, & the rule of thumb is that a wakizashi is valued at half that of an equivalent katana.

 

 Lord, how I wish I could pick up katana at merely twice the price of a Wakizashi! Perhaps the market is different over here though.

 

 I do find the tsuba a bit off key though, the condition is not what I would expect to have matched with the rest of the koshirae.

 

[TomMcRei]

There is exactly 9cm from hole to hole on nakago so basically  nagasa was about 64,5cm long

 

Is it possible to read the only one kanji on nakago?