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While cleaning some blades, I thought I’d take a few quick photos and share this one, as I'm very fond of it. It’s a Rai Kunitoshi utsushi by Shodai Tadayoshi.. extremely fine ji-nie (konuka)..and in some places, clear hada reminiscent of Rai, with pure white nie along the ha..enjoy!

The Kai-Go sold privately in the US. https://www.sho-shin.com/kai-go.pdf https://www.sho-shin.com/kai.pdf https://www.sho-shin.com/hoku12a.htm https://www.sho-shin.com/kaipics.htm

Bishu Osafune Sukesada Papers: NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Country(Kuni)・Era(Jidai): Bizen(Okayama)・Late Muromachi period - August, 1567 (Eiroku 10th year) Blade length(Cutting edge): 71.5cm Curve(SORI): 2.5cm Width at the hamachi(Moto-Haba): 3.22cm Thickness at the Moto-Kasane: 0.77cm Wide at the Kissaki(Saki-Haba): 2.55cm Thickness at the Saki-Kasane: 0.60cm Habaki: oneo part, gold foil Habaki Sword tang(Nakago):Unaltered, Kattesagari file pattern Rivet Holes(Mekugiana): 1 Shape(Taihai): Shinogizukuri, Iorimune, Chu-kissaki Dated and has a wide width and thickness. Hamon is Gunome and Choji with Tobiyaki. Jigane is Itame and Mokume. Nakago is Ubu. Asking: $12,000 Payment: Bank transfer Shipping: Free for continental USA (you pay elsewhere) - but if you want to return it I need to deduct it from the refund This will be going onto Nihonto Antiques soon if it is not picked up here first. Excellent condition, polish is in sashikomi with a very beautiful "light behind the clouds" effect. Strong sugata.

I am seeking assistance as I am trying to find out more about the Kai (Kunie) Gō and was wondering if any one knows any more? The Kai (Kunie) Gō is a Katana that was created by Gō Yoshihiro and appeared as Gō's 15th sword in the Kyoho Meibutsu Cho. Issue is that it appeared in the Destroyed Section of the book and was said to have been damaged in 1657 during the Great Fire of Meireki but was said to have been re-tempered. After WWII it went missing but then I read a very interesting line on a Japanese website: "It had been missing for some time, but was discovered in 1973 in the United States by Morihiro Ogawa, head of the sword and metalwork department at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston." Now I have looked everywhere and cannot find any news story, article, picture or anything really apart non-descript third-hand retellings on sword websites about this discovery... There is an Oshigata but if it was found, and that this sentence is so specific that I suggest it was, then surely someone somewhere knows something more. Does it reside at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts? Has anyone seen it? I am hoping some of you who have been around a little longer than myself, who perhaps know Morihiro, would be able to assist with furnishing some more information and may even be able to share a photo or two? It would certainly be a very interesting story if nothing else. Cheers.

I have added in a picture of it for reference. Thank you for the interest and replies. The shadow is a little deceiving to make it look a little more squatish when is reality it's more rectangular with square corners. I am reasonably sure it's authentic. My teacher got it for me at an antique shop on his last trip to Japan to train. This antique dealer was recommended by his sensei who seems to be knowledgeable of such things. Jt

If you are a member of the NBTHK or NTHK they hold their kantei meetings on the 2nd Saturday of each month - if you can make the meeting you'll see good swords and meet other local collectors... -t

Just watched the video and I think it nicely represented the quality of the armour and artwork. The Hokusai painting of Minamoto no Tametomo and the Oni was wonderful.

Indeed interesting. This one has been on eBay for some time now. It actually has sparked a big question for me... I notice that the stamen on the sakura menuki have raised details. Whereas a sword in my collection in the 151k range with the same ferrule stamps has engraved stamen on the menuki. I have since been trying to narrow down when this change happened. Along with fine details on the tsuka amongst all subcontactors. Someone out there might already know the answer. I'm leaning toward the interpretation that Suya may have switched casting moulds around their last batch of production. Other interpretations may vary... -Sam (Sword on the left is serial number 151,957 東 with ferrule stamps: Suya, 東 , Tokyo1st Star.) (Sword on the right is just a side-by-side example of the difference found in sakura stamen details. 54,683 東, no ferrule stamps, "Dawsons 2a", with thick seppa.)

The exhibition is excellent and very extensive. its breadth and scope are such that the ten or so displayed swords play only a small part in the overall diverse narrative. Impressively, they have collated also around ten armours and as many helmets from the Royal Armouries, the Royal Collection Trust (the suit given to Alfred), several from Stibbert in Venice, Snowshill Manor (a boy suit) and clearly a very substantial private collector. The art is beautiful (excellent scrolls - some of them from 13-14c, beautiful prints including several by Hokusai, and splendid paintings, one by Tintoreto) and accentuated by numerous visual screens running film excerpts from period dramas. The abira, ozutsu, yume etc were also high quality. There is something for everyone - connoisseurs of weapons, fine art, lacquerware, Noh masks, even a gorgeous palanquin! I am sure the youngsters will be fascinated by the original Darth Vader suit lent by the Lucas Museum & Studio. I also quite liked a Toyotomi jinbaori with exotic feathers. Anyway… are there some errors in a few descriptions? Well, yes there are. But so what? The hundreds of people around me were only very briefly reading and spending more time looking, commenting and marvelling. They will hardly retain the copious and overwhelming amount of information. The overall historic representation however seemed well structured and illustrated. So, while a person with a very narrow interest in a very specific field might be disappointed, for someone who appreciates Japan and the samurai in their entirety, this is a treat.

Concerning the tax lists: The book „The Culture of Civil War in Kyōto“ by Mary Elisabeth Berry is a more scientific book thus not easy to read and contain the history and development of Kyōto in the pre Edo-era. In chapter #5 she mentioned lists of products and manufactures which seem to have been assembled and published from time to time. The footnote No. 5 of this chapter (p. 324) says: „The earliest extant list of local manufactures and products is TEIKIN ŌRAI (…between 1394 and 1428) which notes 22 specialities for Kyoto and its environs. KEFUKIGUSA (… publ. 1645…) lists more than 1.800 products of the country, 39 percents of them issuing from the home provinces." (Kyoto no Rekishi vol.3, pp. 418-19) In the same chapter she cites „a rare census report of 1593 … listings 95 workplaces and shops“ in Kyoto. The footnote 36 (p. 327) says Kyoto no Rekishi vol.3, pp. 414-16, Kyōto chūsei toshi-shi kenkyū pp. 433-35 If those references will reveal some facts about Tsuba making in Kyoto I don't know, but it could be worth a look. Probably similar lists will exist from other towns, but I don't know.

Thanks, Mal. Thought it was something like that. And you beat me to the punch on the mune stamp practice peaking in 1942. I checked my charts to see if it was used predominantly on star-stamped blades, but they were found on non-star blades and Seki stamped blades just as often.

I do not think that the “tsuka maki” was ever intended to slide off the tsuka. The fact that it has survived is a miracle because I think it is simply a continuous thick cord or twine wrap that was originally glued to the tsuka and then stabilised by a coating of thick lacquer. Possibly several coats that have then created a very rigid structure. For some reason the glue has given way and it has slid off. I have owned similar wraps on tanto…..but never had one come off!

Glen, as far as I know, in Japan, these organizations and institutions are private and usually not supported by the gouvernment, so they have to find ways to cover their expenses. This applies also to traditional/martial sport associations who have to charge members for taking part in their graduation system. Concerning the main subject of this thread (which I followed with great interest), I think that there is a big difference in comparing images and online material with hands-on experience. AKIYAMA SENSEI has certainly held thousands of TSUBA, and we should not underestimate the sensual/haptic side of TSUBA as classification help. Also, he was much closer to the SAMURAI era (born 1844) than we Westerners ever could be. So just from these facts, I have a tendency to trust him to an extent. I absolutely admire your energy and competence you put into this subject, but as I am not as knowledgeable, I am hesitant to throw the actual system over board as long as there is no other system I could use and rely on. Human-made classification systems will always have benefits and faults at the same time. So before we discard the "old", I think we should have new reliable evidence to work with. The question is where this could come from? Ten years ago, Robert Haynes wrote in JSSUS: ....After a year of studies at the home of Dr. Torigoye, and the translation of his doctoral thesis, TSUBA GEIJUTSU KO, 1960, I thought I had a concrete grasp of all I should know as a student of the fittings for the Japanese sword. How wrong I was! It would take to this day to sort out what I believed, from what my teacher believed and what his teacher, Akiyama Kyusaku, believed. In the end I have come much closer to the thoughts and theories of Akiyama than those of my teacher.... A strong hint for me that there is always movement in judgement and thinking. Just my two YEN.

Here is the final product. I'm quite happy with the outcome of my freshman project. I changed the tsukaito wrapping style to the less ambitious menpumaki moyo iri style and finished it off with a custom-made silk sageo. There is a slight misalignment in the seating of the fuchi against the koiguchi because the drilling of hole in the tang for the mekugi is slightly off, thereby changing the angle slightly. During drilling, I accidentally drilled into the tsukaito on the opposite side of the tsuka, requiring repair with Seiwa glossy water-based leather finishing agent. I really should have done all of this before I wrapped the tsuka. I may redo the entire tsuka/tsukamaki and drill new hole in the tang to correct all of these mistakes. I need to shim some wood veneer into the sides of the opening of the koiguichi to tighten the seating of the blade and eliminate slight side-to-side rattling. Otherwise, the saya turned out quit well.

March 2026 Update now available for the Stamps of the Japanese Sword. Download here: Stamps of the Japanese Sword - NMB Download Section What's new: -- Navy Tsuba with "Gunto Houkoku" "Serve the Country with Military Swords". It was the slogan of the government program to procure civilian swords for the war effort. -- Stamped mei - Kanemune -- Kikumon - new variant added in this section lacking better way to classify it - Botan/Peony Flower on a 26th Generation Kanenori. Significance unknown -- Kokuin - Kiyonobu and Kanenori added -- Kakihan - 4 added: Enshin, 1905; Masatsugu; Sukenao, 1696; Yukihide, 1853 -- Blades with both Kakihan & Kokuin - Naotane, used personal kakihan + kokuin of city the blade was made in -- Appraisors - Ho' nami Kotoku added -- Koshirae stamps - Itabashi Supervisory Unit, Army Ordinance Admin HQ -- Unknowns - Circled Yama; Circled kana -- Type 19 shop logo - 2 added. Enjoy