What kind of authentication paper is this?

[waljamada]

Could someone help me identify these papers?  Is this an independent shinsa paper?  From an organization?  Just an older design?  I don't recognize it's format/style from my small circle of known authentication papers.

[DTM72]

The bottom of your picture group basically means "Certification". I do not recognize the issuing group.

[Valric]

A typical kanteisho issued by Swindle-San from the pre-facebook sensei era. 

 

 

[SteveM]

A new group - 銃砲刀剣研究会 (Jūhō Tōken Kenkyūkai) Guns and Swords Research Association.

I think this group is affiliated with a dealer in Osaka.

There was a query here recently about this same type of paper. Not to be confused with NBTHK.

[Toryu2020]

and it was issued Reiwa 3 so not pre-internet...

[waljamada]

Steve,

 

When I Google both the romanji and kanji of the group's name I don't really see any references or direct website.  Is this kind of an island group of dealers and aficionados?  Know of any credence is given to the groups papers?  If not thank you for identifying the group.  Makes me curious actually about the politics and factions of these types of groups.  The drama of it if you will.

[Valric]

It's quite simple. The politics is "make money". The credence is zero, except for buyers, in which it becomes real papers. The aficionados are also known as externally as "Suckers" and internally as "True connoisseurs". The factions are "make money" and "make more money". The drama is the usual drama: NBHTK is corrupt, fake, etc, green papers better than new papers, join our facebook group, all these things. 

 

Now since it's Osaka, Osaka vs Tokyo is a well-known factional warfare. The selling point I suppose is "those Tokyo people know nothing. We are OSAAAAKAAAAAAAAAAAAA"

 

I still think we should issue NMB kanteisho. 

[waljamada]

Here is the sword its to.  The "authentication paper"  attributes it to Kaneyoshi Mino Muroumachi era.   That's all I know.   I'm tempted by it bwcause it's katana length (25" nagasa) and mostly because I have two wakizashi with the same bohi design and same-ish time frames...so I can put together a poor man's daisho.  Price is about $2.5k.

 

Any opinions?  We'll pretend the 銃砲刀剣研究会 (Jūhō Tōken Kenkyūkai) Guns and Swords Research Association (thanks Steve M) "authentication" paper doesn't exist in the deal.

[DTM72]

Adam,

I am FAR from an expert on this, but here's my .02 cents...the sugata suggests Mino from the Muromachi era. The nakago is MACHI-OKURI - 区送り. The bohi also suggests Muromachi period.

In my opinion, if the blade has no faults, 2.5k is not a bad deal. The tsuba, tsuka and the handachi fittings make a nice looking package. Consider the papers an information item, not a certification item. I think you have the NMB's certification that the blade is Nihonto and NOT a Chinese replica.

 

Best of luck to you.

[SteveM]

I think there are a lot of swords out there, and there is no particular reason to fall in love with this sword. It is an average, unsigned and shortened blade, in need of a polish, which may make your total investment more than the finished product is worth. 

However, if you are already in love with it, you should ask to see a copy of the registration certificate, just to confirm the length of the sword, if nothing else. I would also ask the dealer if there are any fatal flaws in the sword. 

 

I don't know anything about this group. Their invisibility is, I think, a design feature, and it makes me suspicious. I think a group that purports to be authenticating swords, but has no contact number, website, or other details, ought to be viewed with maximum skepticism. This paper confers no status or desirability or value to this sword. The only info I can find on them, is an Osaka dealer who seems to be offering the authentication services of this group for 10,000 yen (~US$90) per paper.