War banner help

[Frank]

Hey folks, need a little help with this war banner. I know top part says best wishes, but can't figure out the rest. Thanks a bunch! 

 

[SteveM]

Slightly unusual in structure, so it's a bit hard to parse. Anyway, the vertical writing is 祝 (congratulations), 歓送 (congratulatory send-off) and then the word 近衛 (Konoe) which is a rather noble family name, but also a word used to describe a guardian of the court. I don't think its meant to be a name here. Maybe its use is intended to be patriotic, or invoke a martial spirit. But it seems slightly weird to me. Under that:  

應集 (a word used to assemble a group, sort of like the military command to "fall in")

勇途 (another word to invoke a glorious send-off of a brave person). 

 

Then we have what should be the recipient's name, but I can't quite get it. Maybe 津寅之助 (Tsu Toranosuke)? 

Anyway, its somebody Toranosuke. 

 

Then on the left side is the writer's name (I think) Shimazu Hatamata, although I'm not 100% sure of this. The two kanji at the top of this name might be a location name (Sata? Yuta?). 

 

[Bugyotsuji]

Great effort Steve. Full of admiration for your abilities.

Could the one being sent off also be a member of the Shimazu, giving 'Shimazu Toranosuke'?

[SteveM]

Hmm - I hadn't even considered that. Actually, I don't have much confidence in the 津 in that part, but I couldn't come up with any other possibility. The Shimazu on the left (the writer's name?) looks a lot different to the large kanji written in the center, so I think I'd rule out the possibility that they share the same last name.

 

And the other bits above Toranosuke... Is it 之? 定? or 之人?

The whole thing might be 応集勇途之人 近衛寅之助君 (Sending off the brave Konoe Toranosuke-kun), but I feel I'm grasping at straws now.

 

 

[Bugyotsuji]

There is a restaurant called Arida Hatamata in Wakayama 有田畑又!

 

No, I meant that 'the other bits above Toranosuke' I was thinking might be in a different style of fancy calligraphy, simply two kanji 島Shima and 津tsu.(?)

Just guessing though.

[Frank]

Wow, well they tend to get rather poetic in pretty much everything. Is it also a matter of someone's "bad" handwriting or maybe a dialect's involved? (we have a different dialect every 5 miles, we also write in that dialect sometimes) Anyways, thanks guys you've been a great help so far!! 

[SteveM]

Hi Frank,

This is not particularly bad handwriting, and there is no dialect involved. It's just highly stylized. Those seeing the banner at the time it was written, wouldn't have any problem understanding it, because they knew the person in question. And, they were closer in time to the age where calligraphy of this kind was in daily use. 

 

Piers, I got your drift - I just didn't think these were Shimazu. 

 

 

But...I haven't shut the door on that possibility completely.

The way the brush strokes flick seem too different from 島津 as written on the name on the left side (below). So I'm stumped.

 

 

[Bugyotsuji]

Totally agree they bear little resemblance, and it is hard to imagine the same person being able to write in differing calligraphy quite so schizophrenically. After searching several Kuzushiji websites, I have given up on this, although your original guess for 津 could still be correct.

 

Perhaps one of our esteemed NMB guardian gatekeepers could step in and sort this out?