WW2 sword gift

[Harold2110]

G'day to all,

The sword pictured was given to me by the family of a returned soldier who was part of the occupying forces of Japan after the war, they are not at all interested in the swords or its history .

I would love to know where it came from who owned it and what is their story.

Would someone in the group be able to start me off first of all identifying the sword and then  tracking down owner and his war service history.

My father was a WW2 veteran who flew Spitfires in the  middle east and as such I've always had an interest in the history of  the people who sacrificed their lives for the cause whatever side of the fence they were on.

The sword appears to be in very good condition being covered in a lot of grease the steel underneath has no rust of stains.

 

[francois2605]

Hello Ian and welcome to the board.

 

Please gently remove the hilt and take a picture of the tang (both sides) as you won't get much info with your current pics.

 

This is what members would like to see.

 

 

 

If the tang is signed and the signature is genuine them you'll know who forged the sword.

[Harold2110]

Thanks Francois,

I'll do that tomorrow and take some pics.

 

Regards Ian

[PNSSHOGUN]

Hi Ian, welcome to the forums. You have a Type 98 IJA officers sword. The blue & brown tassel is for Company grade officers (LT-CAPT), as mentioned above we will need pictures of the blade itself and the Nakago to tell you more. Only use tissues and a light machine/gun oil to clean the blade.

 

What Francois failed to mention is you will need to carefully drive out the small bamboo pin in the handle to remove the handle. If it is stuck don't force anything, gently tap around the sword guard until the handle moves.

 

 

[SteveM]

I'm afraid the owner will remain a mystery unless there is a tag or other identifying document that came with the sword. The inscription on the sword itself (if any) will tell you who the maker was, and possibly a year of manufacture, but only very rarely will it say anything about the owner (with one recent sword on this forum being an exception).