Minatogawa stamped shirasaya

[Richmond]

Hi guys, I have recently come across this shirsaya and blade which was recovered from New Guinea during WW11.

Thanks to a fellow member here, he identified the blase to be bishu osafune sukesada. The markings on the shirasaya just confuse me which is fairly easy to do.

Any theories or ideas on this would be appreciated.

I have a better picture of the mei but couldn't post it up.

 

 

 

Steven L

[george trotter]

Steven,

I read this as KAMI KAZE (divine wind), the same as the headband inscription worn by the pilots who crashed their planes on enemy ships in 1944-45.

The Minatigawa shrine swordsmiths used the stamp you identified on the saya...they made swords for the navy and marked them with this kikusui mon, but in this case, I think it possible that the sword was "blessed" at the Minatogawa Jinja by the monks. They may have put on the kikusui stamp and the Kami Kaze kanji as a "blessing"/patriotic charm for the officer. I have seen such mounted swords, often in brokade bags, which were a personal possession of an officer and were surrendered along with his gunto in 1945..some had a patriotic or religious charm attached. I may be wrong, but I think yours may be one of these...nice find.

Regards, George.

[Richmond]

Thanks George, it is a very interesting piece with the devine wind kanji and the mark of the minatogawa shrine mark. It is a wakizashi length sword and truly came from a crashed aircraft in New Guinea.(not all aircraft burst into flames like the movies) People will go yeah sure it did nice story..But it did, it was brought back by a solider in northern queensland and I can trace its life from there. It remained in another elderly gentlemans care until it came to me.

 

I wish it could talk.

 

Steven L

[george trotter]

hi Steven,

Yes, quite possible that it was retrieved from a downed aircraft by an Aussie soldier. The plane was probably IJN as the navy had its own planes. I spent almost 2 years on Bougainville Island in 1976-77 (with side trips to Guadalcanal) in the Solomons. I worked with a ex-Aussie soldier that fought on Bougainville in WWII and stayed on. He had a katana by Kawachi no Kami Kunisuke II, in buke zukuri mountings, which he personally took off a Japanese soldier (hope I don't offend anyone here) killed in a firefight while on patrol. The Japanese soldier had the sword strapped over his shoulder, carried on his back. It had the best GOTO firttings I have ever seen! Sadly, the blade was slowly deteriorating in the humidity in 1977...by now it will have been ruined.

So...Steven...a nice piece of history...glad yours survived in good condition.

Regards,

George.

[Richmond]

Hey george what a great story about your Bougainville days the canal and sword. Shame about the sword. Bougainville in 1977 would have been one interesting place.....One of my close relatives spent some time there doing stuff.

The blade of my wakizashi is in good condition however it needs a polish. Its a hard one as when to leave something as a relic or over capitalise and restore. I agree that it is a naval relic as per the naval shrine markings I just love the history and story behind things.

 

Cheers

Steven L

[george trotter]

Steven,

Yes, lots of history on Bougainville and Guadalcanal. I saw Admiral Yamamoto's downed Betty bomber on Bougainville...still there. I always wanted to find a sword by Amada Sadayoshi (Yamamoto was holding a sword by this smith when found)...but so far, no luck. I like history also, but in the case of swords, if they are of any quality, i think they should be polished if dirty. I like to keep them in their original gunto fittings if clean, (or with a new saya liner), but if blade is dirty, saya worn etc, I advise to have the blade repolished and put in shirasaya, and kept with their gunto fittings (their last war service mounts). The dirty fittings tidied up and mounted on a tsunagi (wooden "keeper" blade), and kept and displayed with the polished blade. I am considering this for a good WWII gendai blade myself.

Love the history too,

regards,

George.