Tsuka with a message

[johnb]

I just stripped this tsuka and discovered it has a message. My wife translated it as "Why can't you leave things alone" I suspect it says something else. I'm intrigued to know what?

 

Johnb

[cabowen]

your wife was correct....

[Birdman]

Interesting that it uses panels of samegawa rather than full wrap. How old is it?

[Stephen]

She was off a word or two....its "What the hell do you think your doing"...well it did have another four letter word in there but Brian dont like us using it.

[johnb]

The tsuka that you both seemed to have jumped to a conclusion of willful damage, isn't pictured below simply because I'm still having problems loading pictures. Nonetheless, One of the menuki was cut out and the other is missing. The silver foil on the copper kashira is 90% missing, and the tsuka itself has so many splits in it that when squeezed, it gives the sensation of squeezing a soft...lets say sponge. More to the point, it doesn't even fit the sword that it came with.

The principle that one is considered innocent until proven guilt is a legal right of the accused in most countries. The burden of proof is on the prosecution, which has to collect and present enough compelling evidence to convince a jury that the accused is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Not the case here it seems.

 

Johnb

[Brian]

John,

Lighten up

It was a fair assumption, and one that I expect will lead to clarification in the first post next time. We have a duty to warn people not to take apart complete tsuka..glad to hear yours was a write off before.

 

Any translation anyone? I am just glad it doesn't say Tsukahei :lol:

 

Brian

[johnb]

Incidentally Brian, I still can't load pics. I just get redirected to the log in page. I've done everything recommended. I've tried different browsers and 2 computers. In fact the redirect happens even when I post messages, unless I do it on my iPad.

 

John

[Stephen]

John

 

it really was in good fun, make sure you pic are cropped and reduced to size.

[cabowen]

What Brian said.....

[johnb]

With response to your query Birdman I have a few thoughts. Same goes a lot further if it's used in panels and I suspect people who ordered koshirae were on a budget much as we are today. ("want the leather interior or stick with cloth?") And getting that join tight, right up the middle of the ura side of the tuska, is murder.

 

Any other ideas?

 

John

[Baka Gaijin]

Morning all

 

Brian mentioned "Tsukahei"...

 

I didn't know what that meant:

 

http://www.bushidojapaneseswords.com/Di ... %20hei.pdf

 

Apologies if stating the obvious.

 

Cheers

 

Malcolm

[Brian]

Yep, good article, and one worth remebering.

 

Panel samekawa was actually very very common. Not ususual at all to see it.

 

Brian

[johnb]

Woah...it seems to be working. You right Brian, there's a lot of people out there doing bad things to swords and they should be discouraged...Nay, STOPPED.

So, with the hope of some redemption I can finally post a pic of the tsuka as purchased. Also another shot of the roughed in new tsuka. (You can see the split old one center of frame.)

Some time ago my wife was quite taken with a very prettily mounted tanto. So I did one for her. It cost about $150 bucks on ebay and was in a sad state. The blade is shinto with a poorly reshaped kissaki with the temper line that almost running off. At the risk of you lot descending on me like a flock of starlings :D ...I've posted some pics of the before and after. It is finished in urushi and I have attempted to give it a slightly faded look.

Here goes....johnb