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Interesting photo from 1944 at Shimane Sword Corp, Matsue, Shimane in NW Honshu. (banner: Shimane Token Kabushiki Gaisha). Looks to be 14 young women polishing, perhaps all with the same grade of stone. A male supervisor at left. Do not know if related but the Hitachi Steel Works that produced sword iron with Yasuki iron sands was in the same region. [photo from Facebook page of Yoshihiko Usuki, togishi of Koto-ku, Tokyo] Later comments from Japan suggest they are high school girls.

Mal, Don't know if your intent for the thread is specific to that forge, or for all "women sword polishing" photos. If it is focused on that shop, let me know and I'll edit and delete. Here are the photos I've filed, but I don't know the shops they were working: We also have a diary entry from a school girl who was polishing blades at the Nanman Army Arsenal.

Katana by "Mukansa" Yoshiwara Kuniie Blade is signed and dated: (表)吉原荘二恒家作之 Yoshiwara Soji Tsuneie kore o tsukuru (裏)昭和辛亥歳正月(Showa kanoto-ii shogatsu) New Year’s 1971 Blade Description Hacho (Edge length) 71.2 cm. Sori (Curvature) 2 cm. Moto-haba (depth at ha-machi) 3.4 cm. Saki-haba (depth at kissaki) 3.05 cm. Motokasane (thickness) 0.72 cm. Katana: Shinogi-zukuri, iorimune, mihaba futoku The temper pattern (hamon) is gunome midare, rich in ji-nie and kinsuji while the hada is koitame. The boshi in the large kissaki is midarekomi. This robust blade is a visually exciting sword to study. Weight: blade only 844 gram. Engraving: "Bo-hi" kaki-nagashi on both sides Gold foil double Habaki / Shirasaya Authentic Japanese Sword Certificate Price 1,400,000 JPY Sword smith YOSHIHARA Kuniie (YOSHIHARA Sôji) was born in February of Shôwa 20 (1945). His grandfather was YOSHIHARA Kuniie and his father was YOSHIHARA Masahiro. Alongside his brother (Yoshindo), Sôji learned sword forging under his grandfather Kuniie. This sword is one of Yoshiwara Kuniie’s excellent works emulating a blade by the legendary Kiyomaro. With a well-structured hamon, vivid jigane, and o-kissaki it is a masterpiece. The blade is in very good full polish and great condition overall. Exhibiting many attractive features such as: a gunome midare hamon with ashi, a rich hada in ko-itame, and lots of ji-nie and kinsuji. Sword smith Yoshihara Kuniie (Shoji) was recognized as Mukansa level at 37 years of age in Shôwa 57 (1982) and prior to that he received many awards. In 2008, he was designated an Important Living Cultural Property of Tokyo. Some of his other achievements were: -1966 youngest ever recipient of the Award for Effort -1971 youngest ever recipient of the Mainichi Newspaper Award -2003 appeared in the movie The Last Samurai in the role of a sword smith. Without any doubt, Shoji Yoshihara is considered one of the top contemporary sword smiths in Japan. He was a likely candidate to become a Living National Treasure (Ningen Kokuho) sword smith, but sadly he passed away in 2023. I had the great pleasure of knowing him quite well as we practiced Tenshinsho Jigenryu Kenjitsu together for many years after I joined the dojo in 1986 where he practiced and taught as a senior student.

Bumping this with a bad photo to motivate myself to take better photos to add to this thread. Hopefully it will inspire more people to show off their dirks

As a wild guess, ナヲタカ – Naotaka (first name???) 百七十一 – 171 (serial number???)

It can be surprising what can be missed, to me it does appear like it has been there a good while, as stated. It isn't the end of the world as pointed out. Some folks can live with such issues whilst others cant. To me, well, at least its on the mune.

Looks like this one is on hold now. When I saw the date, I wondered if it might be the last sword he made. What do you think?

Hi Dan, Tsuba are a fascinating subject, and after looking at them for over 40 years, I still see forms I have not seen before. Because of the wide variety, there are any number of valid ways to form a collection, such as a “one of everything” collection, collecting certain images, collecting certain artists, signatures or regional works, unusual shapes, etc. However, I think a common characteristic of a satisfactory collection is a drive to find quality examples, and I would recommend the beginning tsuba collector learn how to evaluate a tsuba for quality charictaristics. Quality tsuba are not necessarily expensive and I think it is possible to build a quality collection without a big outlay, but doing so requires a good eye, knowledge, and patience. One reference work on tsuba quality that I think is valuable was written by Dr. Torigoye in Tsuba: An Aesthetic Study. I have attached a copy of that essay below. There was also an article by me titled "Assessing Quality in Iron Tsuba" in the downloads section but it appears to be missing, so I have asked Brian to repost it. Dr.T.doc

I’ve been hunting for a Meiji era naval dirk with a handmade blade for a long time and finally came by something that matches the criteria. Would love to see what treasures the board members here has!

828 blades submitted and out of these only 56 passed. So the chances of getting a blade to Juyo are quite low tbh.

Many thanks for the translation Mal. Morita sensei was the one that located the book in Japan. I never completely translated the text as portions were missing. I found the book's title by doing an Internet search on some of the text. @k morita FYI, one of the swords he polished, serial セ 一二五一, turned up on this forum! WWII Japanese Sword

That's a tough one. Last year I bought a 1534 Sukesada blade without noticing such a crack along the mune (actually even worse than that). I showed it to some artisans and they just nodded and commented, "Yes, this often happens." In fact I think it might have been cracked even before, then been drilled out and refilled, and then the refill had maybe dropped out. Anyway I asked if it could be fixed with umegane and it was! It's beautifully done. I wrote up some of the process with photos here on the NMB. OK, it cost me a bit, but I feel as though I have rescued a piece of history.

Not a fatal flaw, and therefore value reduces a bit, but it's not a major issue. Pic makes it look huge, but if it's only 2.5" long, it's an open ware and doesn't affect the rest of the sword too much. Not desirable, but not the end of the world.

Well for another perspective, I owned a nice sword that appeared flawless. Over a year owning it and one day while cleaning I noticed a large ware just like that in the Mune! Thought I had seen everything about the sword, however with various angles and the natural position of holding it to view, the Mune area was always covered or the focus was on the Hamon/Hada.

Bruce, not specific it was just a general post for interest.

WELL HERE IS SOMETHING YOU DON'T SEE EVERY DAY! It isn't Japanese swordsmanship but sure looks fun! You need to watch the video in the link. https://nimebrand.co...ZyZ0PUFBQUFBR1dra1Nz I guess you could always substitute the needle?

As stated, always be cautious with old papers, but let item stand for itself. I have a Bizen Osafune ju Yokoyama Sukekane wakizashi dated “a day in February 1862” that has a 1961 NBTHK Kicho Hozon (white paper) and just received NTHK-NPO paper in 2023. I would consider old papers a ‘starting point’ for research to confirm the blade and/or mei matches the claim.

Here’s one I recently bought. Tom

Not burning own stuff in ignorant discussions. They are all different. No one is identical.

I own a Tegai papered nihonto. Recently sent it out for remounting. This sword has been kept on a rack in shirasaya. It was shipped wrapped in plastic, in saya, wrapped in bubble wrap, in styrofoam casing, and a box. The box arrived undamaged. The person making my says and tsuka reported finding a 2/12 in hair line delamination crack in the spine. He says it appears older with patina. I maintained this blade regularly with cleaning. I have studied every inch of the blade and noted the flaws. Never have I seen this crack along the spine. If that even possible? This is a papers blade from 2022. Would have passed shinsa with this crack? Is this a fatal flaw and destroyed the value of my Nihonto? If it's new what could have caused this?

The crack was certainly not caused by an accident in the shipping, but temperature differences can cause existing tensions in the steel to form such cracks. Also, existing super fine (practically "invisible") cracks can open more under such conditions.

The 'indents' are if a tsuba was put on another sword so it stayed on the original sword Sometimes these 'indents' were added just for effect

As Jean explained - Very common tsuba....

Not my field but found this http://www.ksky.ne.jp/~sumie99/flaws.html

@Bruce Pennington @Kiipu Bruce That’s a very interesting post of the extract of memoir of a school student. I note that you, Kiipu and Morita san have discussed it June/Sept 2019. As I understand it it’s a 1980 book published in Tokyo, and refers to Shinkyo No.2 Middle School. Did that student do volunteer work in Manchuria (seems unlikely late in the war?) or possibly worked on Mantetsu in Kanagawa? A rough translation of your post follows….. the memory of a student in Manchuria. There is info on swords made there and polished by the student. It includes sword ID nos……but maybe you have all that in your records? Firstly I am not sure if this is by girl or boy. It reports work over recent 6 months in the Nanman Army Arsenal (southern Manchuria?) which included military swords. “Swords I polished were…….” Mantetsu tan tsukuru kore (Showa kou saru haru: year of Monkey, 1944, spring). Katakana “se” セ: 2596, 2767, 1251, 1225, 1293. “su” ス: 18, 273. Koanan-issei (presumably Koa isshin Mantetsu) (Showa otsu tori haru: year of rooster, 1945, spring) Hiragana い: 67, 90, 213, 289, 449. The student’s comments are: two days before graduation I left to join the Kai Miho Kaigunn Koukutai (navy airforce?) as a trainee pilot. The train departed Shin Kyoeki station (is this in Tokyo?) on Showa 20 (1945) March 22. It appears he/she would be the 16th enrolment in Kaigun Koushu as a trainee pilot. A comment is this is repeating what was done by the 3rd enrolment 30 years before (1915?). Dont know if Ive got this correct or not, but it looks a very interesting aspect.

Well, that's as good a guess as any we've tossed about.

Ronen, I think it may be a late TSUBA, but then very late 19th. It is damaged - the face of the wise man/Chinese was lost. It was probably made for a TANTO with HIRA ZUKURI SUGATA or a short WAKIZASHI. Execution is a bit crude, so probably made for export. Motif is as you say, the person might be a NETSUKE to carry the purse in the OBI.

Muromachi pieces, probably 70% kantei can't be done with certainty. Too many similarities, any new submission will yield a new name. Green papers, Kanzan and Nishu sayagaki - got to see if its something that can or can't be definitively kanteied. If it says Yamato Tegai or Naminohira, chances are good it will stand the test of time. If it says Shizu Kaneuji its probably Muromachi Mino or Sue Soshu.

Hi I recently got a katana back from being polished and submitted for shinsa it is Mumei and has been attributed to Muneyuki Takada I was wondering if it gives any indication of which generation smith it is assuming there is more than one many thanks in advance . cheers Chris H

No generation is indicated, just the attribution you stated.

Bob, humans get facial wrinkles with age, swords get corrosion. In your case, the rust on your blade looks like so-called 'spider rust'. A good TOGISHI will be able to deal with it; usually, it is not so deep.

I have a mumei katana that had two different white papers, one from 1960 that attributes it to Shitahara, and one from 1975 that attributes it to Fujishima. I submitted the blade for Shinsa in 2021, and it papered as Hozon attributed to Mino Senjuin. Clear as mud.

Nihontophiles, I ended up with this sword, here are a few closeups of Nagahide's work for future people looking up this smith's work. Sword is machi-okuri for WW2 mounts. Forging is interesting with interesting metallurgy and flaws. The second pics shows these cloudy areas which I am unsure of it being a forging characterics or some sort of age stain?

Finally I found one, on Yahoo Japan. Maybe the brass has been a bit too much cleaned. According to seller description, it is cucumber leaf(?!).

Just gonna hop in and say you guys have been incredibly helpful so far. I was over on a gun forum that has a thread going on about Japanese swords and everyone mentioned this forum if you really want to talk to the smart folk. That was an understatement based on what I've seen here so far! There is a massive amount of knowledge here.

Helping to educate is why many of us are here. While I enjoy living vicariously through each sword that shows up, my real "thrill," now, is helping the newbie along the path. I enjoy my collection, but it is complete. I enjoy our research. And I enjoy educating the knowledge seeker. And like Nick said, all we can do is advise. The responsibility of the next step falls on the newbie.

Hi, I would like to sell my hanging scroll with Tokugawa and his lords or generals. for the condition please look at the pictures. It comes with a wooden box. measures are approximately 215 cm x 68 cm. I think it is end of Edo period. it is really nice piece and if you have any questions please feel free to ask. price: 1.200,- € plus shipping or fair offers best sebastian

I just remembered this from "Kinai Tsuba" page 22 by Malcolm Cox in the Download section. Shitake mushrooms For Malcom - I found this Shiitake https://www.aoijapan...u-shiitake-mushroom/ it is almost identical to Number 61 in the PDF Just some sekigane at the top of the nakaogo-ana also https://www.ebay.com/itm/266434412727 very similar to those of number 64.

Nice displays. I take a more simplistic approach. Those little cheap Perspex stands, not so many. Top of a shelf next to a lamp, like to see the silhouette of an evening, Sukashi especially. Change them about for others for a change of scenery when the time comes.

My papered example-

Thank you very much @Ed @Jussi Ekholm and @Geraint. I really appreciate the breadth of knowledge you bring and share!

Those Meji invented daggers, dirks or what ever are not origin Japanese weapons. The modernised Japanese army/ navy got the design form european armies and slightly design it to look like japanse. These are no Tanto and i think Dawson and other are correct to call them dirks & dagger

I agree with Grey and NewB. Getting a sword and rushing to polish it 'can' be a waste of money and time. Steer the individuals to books and have them dive into prior articles and posts on this forum is a better education for all sword enthusiasts. It saddens me that the current culture is far too quick to anger and angsts and I wish people would be a little more diplomatic. Just my 2 cents. Warm Regards, Jesse

Personally I agree with Darcy's conclusion, all papers from that era are poisoned. Does it mean your item is bad? No, the item still has to speak for itself. Does your own research confirm the attribution, do others agree with the attribution when studying the piece in hand? Have you the confidence to submit it for new papers? The real take-away is for new buyers, do not give any weight to these papers, buy your items based on the quality that can be seen and do not be swayed by these papers. -t

I'd love to, I know Darcy would have wanted that. But not sure how copyright works, I think it passes to the family. If I had permission, I would archive a bunch of them.

A few years back a "box" full of green papers were for sold on epray. and "someone" in the U.S. purchased them. Seller was Japan, Knowledge is power.

Used to be but not any more really …. Darcy explained well why…. One needs to be very knowledgeable, the blade and paper cannot have left the U.K. for 45 years (ie not resubmitted); the owner must have lived in oblivion for the last 45 years; the paper was not issued by a regional branch, etc etc = quite a few conditions for the Kicho etc paper to have the slightest chance. Small, obscure smith and not a high-end item that never left back to Japan or never had been resubmitted to the peregrinations NTHK shinsa coming to the US or U.K…..There is some small possibility but that has diminished so much over the last few decades.

I already have your sword recorded by the student that polished the blade back in 1944! I am not pulling your leg either even though it sounds unbelievable. Compare the serial number on your sword, which is セ一二五一 [SE 1251], to the picture linked below. Thanks for posting these additional pictures as it has made my day. Attention Mantetsu Owners: A Survey, Page 10

Don't want to be boring, but in case some members are wondering, the banner behind these women says "Shimane Token Kabushiki Kaisha" (Shimane Sword Company Pty Ltd.). Looks like this group were employees of a military connected sword company. Shimane is on north coast above Hiroshima. Regards,

For those of us with no idea what a "fonds" is [which includes me!] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fonds Now the Fonz is a different matter.