Hank Posted July 11 Report Posted July 11 Hello, I received this sword about a decade ago from my family while they were sorting through some items in the shed. My great uncle served in the Pacific theater in World War 2 and I believe he brought back this sword, but I do not have definitive proof whether it is i) a fake/reproduction, ii) mass produced military distributed sword, iii) a family heirloom refitted for military service, or iv) a more traditional sword or something else entirely. I have attached the photos of the entire sword, but it is extremely difficult to get a clear picture of the markings on the tang. The markings on the tang only appear on one side, and they are difficult to distinguish even with the naked eye. Any help is appreciated. Thank you in advance! 1 1 Quote
Joseph P. Posted July 11 Report Posted July 11 Hello Hank, This sword appears to be a genuine Japanese sword. The blade is much older than WWII. I can see the leather cover on the Saya, typical of swords that served during WWII. A traditionally made antique Japanese sword that was refitted for the war. Someone will be able to translate the mei (signature). Quote
dwmc Posted July 11 Report Posted July 11 Just a guess but appears to be...Hoshu ju Fujiwara Tadayoshi...others will correct if otherwise! Dave Quote
Hank Posted July 11 Author Report Posted July 11 Thank you so much for the responses. I am super interested in figuring out the history and origin of the sword. Is there any other information, measurements, or pictures that I can provide to help clarify when it was made, who made it, or if it is authentic? After some cursory research, I think there might be a few different generations of "Tadayoshi," and I am curious which generation this sword was made. Thanks so much for the help so far! Quote
Bruce Pennington Posted July 12 Report Posted July 12 [Sam, want to move this over to Translation Assistance or Nihonto?] Hank, there are a couple guys that frequent the Military section that may be able to help, but Sam will move this over to the group of guys who really know these older blades. They're going to want to see photos of the full-length bare naked blade, a close-up of a section showing hamon (temper line) and steel texture (hada), and maybe blade tip. They'll also need some measurements, like this, but mostly the nagasa and sori: 1 Quote
dwmc Posted July 15 Report Posted July 15 After a bit of further research, the closest Tadayoshi I could locate was 1st or 2nd generation 1648 to 1681 Tadayoshi's. The Mei is very degraded and difficult to translate but appears to read Gashu Ju Tadayoshi. Information is based on Markus Sesko's Swordsmiths of Japan page 1072. Hopefully Bruce will move to translation assistance for help from those more expert... Dave gash Quote
tbonesullivan Posted July 16 Report Posted July 16 Looking at the Mei, the first character is quite degraded in this light, with the rest reading 前 住 忠 吉. Could the first character be HI 肥 instead of BU 豊? I definitely think I see two side by side parts to the top character. 2 Quote
The Blacksmith Posted July 16 Report Posted July 16 My initial reading of the mei was also Hizen David. 2 Quote
tbonesullivan Posted July 16 Report Posted July 16 1 hour ago, The Blacksmith said: My initial reading of the mei was also Hizen David. I just found this by searching for the mei: https://www.touken-hasegawa.jp/item/D-09/ 2 Quote
Joel Lundqvist Posted July 20 Report Posted July 20 On 7/11/2026 at 4:32 AM, Hank said: Hello, I received this sword about a decade ago from my family while they were sorting through some items in the shed. My great uncle served in the Pacific theater in World War 2 and I believe he brought back this sword, but I do not have definitive proof whether it is i) a fake/reproduction, ii) mass produced military distributed sword, iii) a family heirloom refitted for military service, or iv) a more traditional sword or something else entirely. I have attached the photos of the entire sword, but it is extremely difficult to get a clear picture of the markings on the tang. The markings on the tang only appear on one side, and they are difficult to distinguish even with the naked eye. Any help is appreciated. Thank you in advance! Love the hamon, looks like a storm on the sea, 1 Quote
Bruce Pennington Posted July 21 Report Posted July 21 Hank, Can you try a mangnet to the habaki (the collar on the blade just south of the hand guard) and see if it's iron? Quote
Hank Posted July 21 Author Report Posted July 21 Hello. Thanks for all the help. I am going to post some pictures with a tape measurement. I have to do this in multiple replies due to the file size restriction. Based on the small blade length, would this be classified as a wakizashi? Furthermore, I believe the sword is signed katana mei (based on cursory research). Is this consistent with any of the aforementioned sword smiths? Thanks so much again for your help. Quote
Hank Posted July 22 Author Report Posted July 22 11 hours ago, Bruce Pennington said: Hank, Can you try a mangnet to the habaki (the collar on the blade just south of the hand guard) and see if it's iron? Hi Bruce. When I put a magnet on the hibaki it does stick. However the hibaki is still on the blade so I’m not sure if it is the blade’s magnetism or the hibaki itself. It’s pretty difficult to remove from the blade so haven’t been able to test isolated by itself yet. Thanks. 1 Quote
Bruce Pennington Posted July 22 Report Posted July 22 @nulldevice Chandler has been discussing the iron habaki here, and thought yours might be one: Quote
nulldevice Posted July 22 Report Posted July 22 9 hours ago, Bruce Pennington said: @nulldevice Chandler has been discussing the iron habaki here, and thought yours might be one: It looks like it may be silver foiled and the magnet could be attracted to the nakago below. But if you can get it off and take clearer photos and test the habaki by itself with a magnet, I'd love to see it! True iron habaki are quite rare to find with blades these days! 1 Quote
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