Can anyone help me?

[Colmorn]

Hi.

 

I am new into collecting Japanese swords - so pls forgive me, if I am not using the correct phrases etc.

I recently bought a Tachi with the mon of the Tagunawa Clan and with the following signature. Can anybody help me identificing the maker of this Tachi?

 

When was the Tachi made and by whom?

 

Best regards

Peter D. Colmorn

Denmark.

 

[YourBabyBjornBorg]

Hi! This is signed by 井上真改 Inoue Shinkai, a swordsmith who worked from 1648 to 1682, the date should be on the back if there is one.

 

However, the signature does not look genuine. 

 

Does this sword come with an NBTHK Hozon paper or above?

[Bugyotsuji]

You probably mean the Tokugawa clan, like royalty in Japan.

[Colmorn]

Gents.

 

Thanks for your swift replys.

 

Yes sorry -  it was the Tokugawa Clan.

 

I have no papers on it - it was bought at an international auction in Copenhagen some years back.

 

It seems to have a very fine and almost straight hamon. The blade is appr. 71 cm long.

 

Best regards

Peter

     

[Geraint]

Dear Peter.

 

Some information to get you started here. https://nihonto.com/shinkai/  Can we see a shot of the whole nakago please?  As you may already know false signatures are common on Japanese swords and the more significant the name the more caution should be exercised.  Whatever the outcome this is a really nice start to your studies.

 

All the best.

[Colmorn]

Dear Geraint.

 

Thanks for your reply. Attached are 2 pictures of the nakago.

 

        

[NotANinja]

I don't want to be that guy, and please correct me if I'm wrong but the wavy shinogi line in the nakago makes me a tad suspicious of this blades origin. There's also something off about the patina on the nakago, looks a little like it's been artificially aged. I hope I'm wrong and will defer to more experienced people but I can't shake the gut feeling that this is a modern reproduction. 

[PNSSHOGUN]

Unfortunately what you appear to have is a relatively recent sword (late 19th century to early 20th century) where fairly poor pieces (by Japanese standards) were made for export to foreigners. They often feature elaborate (but simple) Koshirae that would appeal to the foreign buyers with little knowledge who bought up all sorts of Samurai wares to decorate rooms or whatnot. 

[YourBabyBjornBorg]

Hi again! I'm sorry if my first reply seemed impolite.

 

I only compared your sword to other more easily accessible online sources, like Osaka Shinto Zufu, then came to my initial response.

 

I should have explained my guess with more concrete evidence.

 

Here are some examples from my copy of Shinkai Daikan.

 

 

 

 

I'm not sure if this is against NMB's policy on intellectual property, and I would remove these if so : (

 

Notice that none of these signatures has this kind of chisel strokes sticking out on the top of the 井 character, a Tekuse (手癖, an act of habit, in this case, when chiseling signatures), no doubt, by the counterfeiter.

 

It's always just two lines from top to bottom in the 井 character with genuine Shinkai's work.

 

 

So yes, I would agree this is not a Gimei (fake signature) of maximum effort, unfortunately.

 

(The wavy shinogi line and off-looking patina are also telltale signs, as said above.)

 

Edits:

 

Anyway, let's not get hung up on this Mei (signature). This still could be a nice sword in many other aspects.

 

To tell the quality of the work, however, requires much better photos of the sword.

I think there are many guidelines on how to take pictures of a Japanese sword on this forum, it's just I can't find any now orz

 

[raaay]

Hi Peter , you have a Tachi mounted sword with a Katana blade,  as the blade is signed Katana Mei .

 

and what is the small mark just above the Mei ? 

[John C]

On 6/9/2026 at 6:40 AM, YourBabyBjornBorg said:

Here are some examples from my copy of Shinkai Daikan.

Joe:

Does the Shinkai Daikan show how Inoue Shinkai wrote his dates?

 

John C.

[YourBabyBjornBorg]

5 hours ago, John C said:

Joe:

Does the Shinkai Daikan show how Inoue Shinkai wrote his dates?

 

John C.

 

Mr. John C.:

 

Yes, there is a small chapter on it! I'm not sure whether to put them on the forum, so maybe I should first DM you about them.

[John C]

Thank you, it helped a lot. I responded to the PM.

 

John C.