Stylized script on nakago. Body cutting test? Dedication?

[waljamada]

Hoping to understand what this is/says on an edo period blade and also the mei translation.  Thank you for any answers in advance, it is much appreciated.

Edited to add this pic of the kanji.  Saw it after I posted but underneath the photo it did say this is a torso cutting test inscription.  Is that accurate?

[SteveM]

Yes the picture is the text of the date and the cutting test. 

 

寛政元年己酉五月九日

May 9th, 1798

 

次胴落長坂勝曽試之

(Two) bodies cut. Test performed by Nagasaka Katsumasu  

 

Unsure of the "Two", as the kanji used actually means "next". Very beautifully written. 

 

Sword itself is Sukesada (備前国長船祐定)

 

 

 

 

 

[mywei]

Hi Steve

Just a slight query - 勝曽 can it be pronounced Katsuzo?

次胴落 may mean 'bodies cut in succession' I think

 

[waljamada]

Thank you so much Steve!  I really appreciate your assistance to myself and others!

 

While looking at the pictures closer, does this appear to be hagire to anyone else?

[Geraint]

Dear Adam.

 

I'm not sure what you are looking at but hagire are often hard to spot.  I can see a few lamination flaws but they are not too serious.  The usual marker for hagire is a straight line running from the ha through to the rest of the blade, visible on both sides of the blade.

 

Have a look here, http://www.ksky.ne.jp/~sumie99/flaws.html

 

All the best.

[waljamada]

Geraint,

 

Thank you for your response.  I've once before seen what I thought to be a crack/hagire that runs parallel (can hagire run parallel or are they only perpendicular?) to the boshi in a blade.   I see what looks like the same issue in this sword and I'm still not sure in either case if it would be a "crack", scratch or simply clean hairline opening.  This blade happens to have the line on the boshi and a correlating mark on the other side in the same spot.  Could just be coincidence, could be two separate mostly cosmetic issues, artifacts from photography etc...not familiar enough yet with flaws and their many iterations.

[SteveM]

22 hours ago, mywei said:

Just a slight query - 勝曽 can it be pronounced Katsuzo?

 

Yes, this and other readings are possible. 

[Fuuten]

Adam, 

 

On the link Geraint shared above, I think what you describe would be a Tempering crack as opposed to a crack perpendicular to the cutting edge - hagire.

[ZoomZ]

Adam .

 

Post up a full length photo of the sword please .

 

I would love to see it .

 

Russ

 

[waljamada]

29 minutes ago, ZoomZ said:

Adam .

 

Post up a full length photo of the sword please .

 

I would love to see it .

 

Russ

 

 

Here are some screenshots I had kept.