Questions about a tanegashima matchlock.

[Dmitry]

Hello,

I would be very grateful if you could help me date this piece. I couldn't find any info on the tanegashimas aside from this web-page -

http://www.japaneseweapons.com/hinawajyu/english.htm , and was wondering if it could be possible to attribute it more precisely.

Overall length 155 cm.

Barrel is 110 cm long, and the bore is about 12.5 mm.

 

Based on what I had gotten from the above-mentioned resource, this piece appears to be a Sakai Tsutsu.

Your expert help is greatly appreciated!

[Mark Green]

I have a couple books at home. I will check later if noone has answered you.

It is a very nice piece. I love the bamboo triger guard, and all the inlay. It looks very well made.

mark G

[b.hennick]

There are pegs holding the barrel to the stock. Remove the pegs and look under the barrel for a signature. You can post a picture of the signature and ask for a translation. That should help.

[watsonmil]

It would appear to be a mid 19th century Saki Gun of Shibatuji style. These later matckocks tended to be somewhat over decorated as compared to those of an earlier period. You will most likely find some kanji on the bottom of the barrel usually giving the province of manufacture and the name of the smith. In order to have a look, cock the Serpentine ( hammer ), then if you push out and remove the 4 bamboo ( sometimes brass ) pins from left side out the right side, the barrel should come off by firmly holding the top of the stock while the barrel is upright, and gently pulling the barrel away from the stock at a slight angle. Once free of the stock at the muzzle end lift the barrel out of the stock. Turning the barrel over should allow you to see if the barrel is signed. Quite often the bedding of the stock will also have writing in ink which will be the stock maker's signature. There are members here who can translate the characters provided you post decent photographs. If like most Taganishima a layer of rust will have formed along the sides of the barrel. This is caused by the iron barrel coming into contact with the oak stock which is high in acid. The barrel should be carefully wiped down with a good grade gun oil and allowed to stand. Much of the rust will wipe off with a cloth. Repeating the process will remove even more. The pitting on top of the barrel is unfortunate, ... and not common on even moderately maintained guns. Anyways, I'm sure you will have other advice as your post is read.

.... Ron Watson

[Dmitry]

Thank you for your knowledge and advice, gentlemen! I will take some photos once I remove the barrel.

Interestingly, the barrel has a battle scar, as if it were struck by a sword, or a projectile.

[watsonmil]

Hello again,

The mark across the barrel is a puzzle, ... It is too wide for a sword, and the lead projectiles of the time this gun was in use would never cut a grouve like that in iron. A modern high velocity projectile would do this but the mark does not look fresh enough. I have restored numerous Matchlocks ( among many other antique firearms ). Be liberal with the oil and elbow grease. The stock too once the barrel is removed should be washed with a mild soap and water ( outside ONLY ). Dry with a clean rag, and apply several coatings of a good quality lemon oil. That old wood will love you for it. You can also apply a liberal amount of lemon oil to the bedding of the stock. Do not however apply oil directly onto any ink signature that may show up. The ramrod too should be removed and cleaned, and oiled with lemon oil. It is always a good idea before cleaning the inside of the barrel to take a measurement of depth using the ramrod. Check and see that it goes slightly deeper than where the flashhole enters the barrel. Putting a mark on the ramrod and then comparing depth on the outside of the barrel answers this question. If the ramrod depth indicates it stops above the flashhole, ... well then let me know and I'll run you through the procedure for removing the ball and powder. Two of the matchlocks I own were still loaded after 150 - 200 years ! It is NOT wise at this stage to remove the breach plug for further cleaning, as they are usually so tightly rusted into place that twisting on the square breach plug body with a wrench will at the very least cause unnecessary damage. A matchlock or ANY muzzle loading firearm can be cleaned quite nicely without EVER removing the breach plug. It takes more time, but it is less likely to cause the gun damage. Write me before doing this step, and I'll talk you thru it if you're not familiar with cleaning muzzle loaders. Same with removing and cleaning the INSIDE of the lock, ... it is easy to remove once you know how. If you do not know how ASK. Anyways enough for tonight. I look forward to seeing what is under that barrel ! Kind regards, ...Ron Watson

[Bugyotsuji]

As the above posters say, probably Sakai. Most of the indicators in the band, sights and decorations are there.

 

The bamboo effect trigger guard and serpentine allow for a possibility of Kunitomo. These two places competed with each other, and although Kunitomo tended to be more honest and more 'refined' (my opinion), sometimes Kunitomo used OTT Osaka-type decoration. Conversely, some Osaka guns were less gaudy.

 

(Your Ama-ooi is missing, and the pan has had 'bugu-naoshi', ie a new plug, as the old pan had probably seen too much use.)

[watsonmil]

Piers noticed the amaooi missing ( a more or less rectangular brass plate ) that fits between the priming pan and the barrel. This is one of the reasons for the heavy barrel corrosion in this area. This brass plate acted as a shield protecting the barrel from the flash and searing action of the black powder on ignition. Black powder is highly corrosive to iron especially when ignited. Thr residue is highly acidic and if left on iron for even a relatively short period will cause the rusting you see on that area of the barrel. The 12.5 mm caliber means this is a 3 monme gun ( ball weight ) or about .50 inch caliber. The " monme " is simply the Japanese way of measuring caliber by projectile weight. As with the Japanese samurai swords, these interesting firearms need to be maintained and where possible restored to as close to their original beauty as possible. Many are true works of art. ... Ron Watson

[Dmitry]

I have successfully removed the barrel, and lightly cleaned the kanji area with some BreakFree CLP oil.

The stock did not contain any writing on the inside, or else I was not successful in finding it.

The silver

[Dmitry]

More photos of the kanji.

[Bugyotsuji]

That confirms Sakai at once. Enamiya gun. Gotta rush, but the Mei seems to say

Sesshu ju Enamiya Saeimon(?) Hidekiyo Saku

 

 

The other line is the method of barrel construction...

[Nobody]

The inscriptions may be;

 

摂州住 榎並屋伊兵衛英清作 – Sesshu ju, Enamiya Ihe’e Hidekiyo (reading?) saku

地鉄鍛惣巻張 (Jigane kitae, so-makibari)

 

[Bugyotsuji]

Koichi san, many thanks for the follow-up!

 

PS Dmitry. If and when you start the search for an Ama-ooi, see if you can locate an original brass hinge pin for the pan lid. The one you have there looks like a later addition. (It's a minor detail, but it should really be of a hollow tubular construction, to take the wire support from the wet-weather umbrella.) Oh, and hard to tell from the pic, but do you have a Karuka (Sakujo) ramrod for it? They are quite easy to make if it's missing.

[Dmitry]

Thank you very much indeed, gentlemen!

Your help and expertise are quite impressive!

 

I won't be restoring this piece, as I am but a temporary custodian of it. I think it is wiser to leave it the way it is now, so as not to spoil it. I find Japanese weapons fascinating, but it is not my area of collecting. I am also fond of looking at the old netsuke. I collect naval edged weapons from the age of fighting sail, and this [and one other tanegashima] were part of a large eclectic collection I have acquired some time ago.

 

There are what appears to be some characters incised in the stock, unless I am seeing things. Also note the name DOZIER lightly scratched in the lock plate. Probably a bring-back from WWII...

[Bugyotsuji]

Numbers on a stock can mean various things, but the most common goes back to 1872 when the Meiji governement mandated a registration of all guns in Japan. Depending on the Prefecture, the way of stamping/inserting/branding the numbers was very different. I think I can see 八十八on the left, and then 二千五?... on the right. This registration was repeated several times over succeeding years.