Confirming Mei on Wakizashi #1

[TAIOSON]

Here are photos of the Wakizashi and my interpretation of the Mei.

 

Hope the experts here can confirm what I came up with and/or correct my mistakes.

 

My best guess is (mei side) Bishu Osafune Morimitsu and (date side)

Oei Niju Hachi Nen Ni Gatsu Hai (a day in the 2nd month of the year 1421)

 

Your help is always greatly appreciated.

[TAIOSON]

The next three photos that should have been with the first post.

[sencho]

備州長船盛光

 

looks like Morimitsu to me.... but I am definitely no ex-spurt...

 

Date could be Oie 応永

 

I don't understand the third kanji... you say "ni ju" someone may be able to explain but I am lost there... rest of it "hachi nen ni gatsu hi" looks right to me

 

There were some heavy hitters around then... maybe one of the 'spurts can match it up in Fujishiro's or Hawleys..

 

Cheers

[John A Stuart]

Hi T, You have everything in order. It is Bishu Osafune Morimitsu. I have included the oshigata from Fujishiro. Research shows he signed nijimei and the Osafune mei in various ways. He was extant around oei era, oei bizen, even though the nengo looks more like koei 1342 to me. The pic of the nakago is a Morimitsu wak I haven't decided is right or not. John

[sencho]

Hi John,

 

What do you make of the third kanji on the date??

 

cheers

[John A Stuart]

I must say the third kanji is problematic "Oei ? Hachi Nen Ni Gatsu Jitsu".I also did some digging and the nakago does not seem to be right as in type and the way the mei is applied, plus shinogizukuri which is what this is headed to I think, I'm not sure about that for oei bizen short swords. It needs more investigation. I'd like to see better pics of the whole sword. John

[Nobody]

The 3rd kanji is "niju (廿)" (= 十 + 十).

[John A Stuart]

I did some more research and found that the oei bizen did make shinogizukuri but I could only find hirazukuri examples. Thanks Koichi-san, it didn't look like that. John

[sencho]

Niju .... so Taioson was right with that.... thanks Moriyama san....

 

So John, me old shipmate, 28th year that rules out koie (i thought Koei too) as it was only 4 years long!!! Actually that rules out just about everything else ending in "ei"!!!!

 

Oei it is, I guess....

 

Good Job Taioson!!

 

Cheers

[TAIOSON]

Thanks for the response guys. Over the three years or more that I've worked on this the third kanji is the one that stumped me the most until i finally realized the ni was not part of the Niju kanji. Anyway, I think I arrived at Niju from the mei on another or other pics I saw in my research, can't remember for sure.

 

I'll post more and better pics of the mei and some of the whole sword but can't promise will be good enough to help, but I'll try. Along that line I played around with a long bed scanner today trying to replicate the pictures in the books, you know, the ones with the black background. Photos turned out very well but when resized in order to post the resolution went to pot. I'll try camera shots.

 

Thanks again for all the help.

[John A Stuart]

Hi Richard, Finally saw the name at the foot of your posts. I have an article on scanning nihonto that you might like to see. PM me if you wish a copy. Yes, Nigel we got a 'B'. Blast. John