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明治十七年 – Meiji 17th year (1884) 春三月 – Spring, 3rd month 秋月胤永兼銘 – Akizuki Kazuhisa (AKA Akizuki Teijiro), also serves as a mei. Ref. Akizuki Teijirō - Wikipedia 贈之以賀 – Present this to celebrate. 野口坤之任 – Noguchi Kon’no, being commissioned as … 陸軍少尉 – Army second lieutenant Ref. 野口坤之 - Wikipedia Noguchi Kon'no was one of Akizuki Kazuhisa's students before he was commissioned to the Army.

Hi guys, I'm struggling with this sword translation. I've got Meiji 17th year spring 3rd month, below it "aki zuki?" something "mu mei" (which doesn't make sense). The other side appears to be a "gift" for a personal name??? Many thanks in advance, Tom

The show is about 2 months away. Perfect time to make plans to attend. More swords, tsuba, kodogu etc in one place than you could see otherwise. Great hand on opportunity to learn. Saturday there will be educational presentations, more details to follow Basic show information here: http://www.chicagoswordshow.com/ If you want to stay at the Hyatt here is a link. Rooms are filling up, if you have trouble booking let me know https://www.hyatt.com/en-US/group-booking/CHIRW/G-TOK1 If you want a table let me know, i usually have a few people who can't make it due to illness/emergency. You can contact me regarding the show at chicagoswordshow@gmail.com Thanks for looking Mark Jones

Now that is bit hefty topic line and I do not really have a standing theory ready for it, nor perfectly accurate formula for calculations. However I have done some measuring in old school way from books and done my own reasoning and thinking. A recent post by Arnaud made me remember what I had tried to do a while ago for few smiths. As many forum members might know ōdachi are the most interesting thing for me alongside big naginata and when I go to Japan those are pretty much the things I seek to look at shrines, museums etc. They are however unfortunately very rare. Of course many of them were shortened into regular sized blades later on. However that brings me to the second problem, there are just huge amounts of long ō-suriage mumei katana attributed to some of the top smiths (and to other smiths as well). In overall so many of them that it will leave me scratching my head. Some massive ōdachi and massive naginata/nagamaki were definately used, however I would dare to believe they were not ordinary weapons that were common to encounter. This is not in any way really accurate data, so do not take it as the truth. However it will give some insight on what I personally feel. For some old tachi it is relatively easy to try to figure out the original length, for some it is much more difficult. For this data I needed to have relatively specific data in order to do the calculations, and of course I do have pictures or oshigata of each and every sword. Now of course for best results I would take pictures of every sword, then put the picture collage to computer and scale it counting pixel to match real life size. I have done this type of thing for naginata in past and it takes quite a bit of time. Someone or AI might succeed in it much faster but sometimes doing stuff like that is fun. I only could of course use signed tachi for this data (I counted in partially signed though if they filled the other criteria). Then I must have the nakago length measurement for the item (this is because many pictures are not 100% in scale in books so I needed to calculate the actual measurements I took) I did measure the gap from munemachi to start of the signature for each ubu sword to be a reference point. There were of course few outliers but I believe smiths signed relatively often in similar placement, and the data would also correlate with this. I also tried to look the signature in relation to ana but I must confess it was getting bit too complicated for me, so as I was not looking that deeply into this I did not have time for everything. Then tried to use logical applying on suriage swords to determine the possible original length. While not perfectly accurate I did get very similar results with my personal method than is listed for few swords by Japanese experts. I did select Tomomitsu and Kanemitsu basically as I like them so much. Rai Kunimitsu was just something I was curious about as there are so many swords (signed and mumei) for Rai Kunimitsu. First up is Tomomitsu there are the 2 ubu ōdachi, and I had only 5 suriage tachi that fill the criteria. As can be seen in graph they weren't ōdachi sized originally. Then for Kanemitsu the first entry is the famous ōdachi Ō-Kanemitsu. In my eyes it was originally slightly bigger than it currently is, my estimate was pretty much the same I have seen by experts in books, amazing sword that I hope to see it at TNM some year. The second ubu is the magnificent JūBū tachi at Fukuyama Museum of Art, tiny bit short of being an ōdachi. As I have not yet seen Ō-Kanemitsu this is so far my favorite Kanemitsu. For Kanemitsu there were 17 other suriage swords and only 1 of them came close to being an ōdachi but it didn't really pass as it was tiny bit short. Lots of very large amazing tachi though. For Rai Kunimitsu there was actually one suriage tachi that was still very long, and by my calculations and observations would have been originally c. 95 cm ōdachi. This is the National Treasure that is held in Kyushu National Museum, I was around 1 cm of the expert length estimate so while not perfect it gets rather close. Other than that one, all were just long tachi that of course many of them were really awesome. This doesn't really give any definitive answers and for myself it just maybe raises more and more questions. I hope someone finds this interesting.

Hi Ben, before you do anything, have a squiz at this. http://japaneseswordindex.com/care.htm Its important if you have never handled one before.

Hi Juan, Welcome to the forum. Another thought is that a spear (or indeed any blade) doesn't have to penetrate deeply to cause significant damage and on the battlefield it may be a disadvantage for the user if it does so as it may be difficult to withdraw quickly when needed to deal with another opponent.

Kanemoto

Juan: In regard to the thickness, picture this blade on the end of a 8 to 12 foot pole. Imagine a line of ashigaru as the first line of defense for cavalry. These blades were used against horses and armor at full charge. The yari had to be quite robust to withstand the impact. John C.

KOSHIRAE FOR WAKIZASHI *NO BLADE* SHISHI THEME NOTE: Measurements are in inches: KOA: 30.25 K SAYA: 23 K TSUKA: 5.1875 TSUNAGI OAL: 28.1875 TSUNAGI NAGASA: 21.5 TSUNAGI NAKAGO: 6.6 SORI: 0.75 TSUBA MOTIF: Brass Karakusa TSUBA MEI: 0 TSUBA DIMENSIONS: ? TSUBA ANA: ? MENUKI: Shishi F/K MOTIF: Shishi F/K MEI: 0 KOZUKA MOTIF: 0 KOZUKA MEI: 0 KOGATANA MEI: 0 HABAKI: 1 pc. Shakudo This is a wakizashi sized koshirae, see lengths above. I reiterate, koshirae only, no sword. I do not know the exact age of this koshirae. The koshirae appears to be relatively new ie; not antique, however the fittings are all ANTIQUE. The koshirae has a wooden Tsunagi. A Tsunagi is an exact wooden replica of the blade for which the koshirae was originally made. Before you ask, I have no idea what became of the original blade or who made the tsunagi. The koshirae is nice and is done in matching Shishi fittings. Shishi, are sometimes called Jishi or Koma-inu 狛犬 (lion dog) in Japan. Shishi are guardians which repel evil. They are often seen outside temples and shrines and are very popular on sword fittings. All of the fittings depict shishi with the exception being the tsuba. The tsuba is brass with karakusa (scrolling vines) in katakiri bori. There are a few small stains on the tsuba. The habaki is shakudo, or possibly blackened copper and has a few small dents in it. The tsuka is wrapped in samegawa, then wrapped with leather ito. The kojiri while it resembles metal it is lacquer and mimics a metal one. The saya is black and has a pattern of clouds. Or at least clouds are my best guess. Finding koshirae which fit other blades is difficult as each blade is slightly different, therefore each koshire is slightly different as they are custom built for a particular sword. It is not impossible, but sometimes difficult. Collectors have been known to find a koshirae that fits perfectly or which is similar in size and with some minor alterations make it work. If your sword is in fresh or recent polish, inserting it into an “old” koshirae is not advised. One little grain of sand inside the saya can potentially scratch the polish. Another option is simply displaying a similar sized koshirae alongside your blade. Even though relatively new, there is no guarantee given or implied that a bit of sand or trash has not entered the saya. If you plan to put a blade into this koshirae, take caution and do it at your own risk. This koshirae is also being sold with no guarantee given or implied that it will fit any sword. Detailed measurements have been provided in the event you are attempting to fit it to your blade. While difficult to find an exact match, the measurements will assist in find something close, at best fitting perfectly, at worst requiring minimal alteration. Condition: See Photos. The information I have provided is all I have on this koshirae. Returns: No accepted unless item is not as descriced. Ships USPS Priority Mail Insured. Your address and contact information is required to get an accurate shipping quote. Buyer is responsible for knowing your countries import laws and regulations. $500 plus any additional fees (S/H, PayPal, Wire, Insurance, etc) Contact me via email only: Yakiba.com@gmail.com

SADAHITO, ENAMOTO GENDAITO, SHINSAKUTO MEI: URA: RI RI no TAME / SEIKI-MATSU AKI no HI For Lilly, on a day in the fall at the end/turn of the century. OMOTE: SADAHITO SAKU DATE: SHIRASAYA DATED 2002 NAGASA: 25.08cm (9.875") OVERALL: 35.56cm (14") MIHABA: 2.875cm (1.125") KASANE: 0.63cm (0.25") SORI: SLIGHT SAKI-SORI NAKAGO: UBU MEKUGI ANA: ONE YASURIME: KIRI MUNE: IORI HADA: TIGHT KO=ITAME WITH UTSURI HAMON: MIDARE BOSHI: KOMARU HORIMONO OMOTE: NONE HORIMONO URA: NONE HABAKI: 1 PC. SILVER SHIRASAYA Sadahito was the second son of Yusuishi Sadayoshi. Sadayoshi studied under Gassan Sadakatsu in Osaka. Later he relocated to Mishima in Shizuoka. He became Mukansa in 1996 and died in 2000. Enamoto Sadahito was born in 1954 and began his training under his father while in elementary school. He became a licensed sword smith in 1977. He specializes in Soshu den as well as the Gassan tradition. This Tanto is obviously a Mamori-gatana. Generally, mamori-gatana are housed in koshirae. And given as wedding gifts. Not sure if this one was ever mounted in koshirae, but it didn’t come to me with a koshirae. The inscription “Ri Ri no Tame, Seiki-Matsu Aki no Hi”. This translates as “For Lilly, on a day in the fall at the end/turn of the century”. While the nakago is not dated the shirasaya is. It also states it was made in the US. It reads: Beikoku ni oite Heisei jūyonen rokugatsu hi Enomoto Eishichirō Sadahito “In the US, on a day in June of Heisei 14 (2002), Enomoto Eishichirō Sadahito” Courtesy of Sesko’s: SADAHITO (貞人), Shōwa (昭和, 1926-1989), Shizuoka – “Izu-jū Sadahito saku” (伊豆住貞人作), “Izu no Kuni Sadahito” (伊豆国貞人), real name Enomoto Eishichirō (榎本栄七郎), born 1954, second son of Enomoto Sadayoshi (貞吉). This tanto is in excellent condition and would make a nice addition to the collector of tanto, gendaito, Sadahito fans, collectors of mamori-gatana, kaiken etc. $2200 plus S/H and any associated fees (PayPal, wire, etc.) If you are interested in owning this tanto contact me at: Yakiba.com@gmail.com

Juan, welcome to the NMB forum! YARI are thrusting weapons. Cuts and sweeps are done with a NAGINATA.

Hi @Ben A Harris, You have what looks like a large and imposing sword in those WW2 military fittings. Are you able to take the handle off, and show us the tang? These swords were designed to be disassembled, so fear not. But still, proceed with care and caution. Skip ahead on this video to the time 6:40, for instructions on disassembling a sword in fittings.

I was wondering: with sankaku yari as thick-headed as this, wouldn't they have trouble thrusting and stabbing? That thickness would be more advantageous for cuts and sweeps, but for thrusts? I'm not stating anything as fact. I'm just curious. Thanks for the thread and all the posts about spears you upload.

You're only a state over from me, I'll DM you some information regarding getting your blade looked at in person. ~Chris

This is absolutely amazing resource I have used it so much over the years. There is a lot of information on that site I have not easily found anywhere else.

That Kazuyoshi katana is a monster... 0.9mm motokasane is the type of dimension we usually see on a yoroidoshi, and here it's on a nearly 85cm blade! I can see why two mekugi would be needed.

Brian, we have to imagine that a traditionally made sword-blade is basically a bonded sandwich construction in cross-section. The outer layers (= KAWAGANE) are high-carbon steel (hard, but not elastic), the inner part (= SHINGANE) is not hard but more elastic. If such a workpiece is bent, it will be stretched on the outer side of the bend, and the inner side will be compressed. The SHINGANE as the "neutral" phase of the construction will stay in place under 'normal' conditions unless the item is broken. In a technical context, the phenomenon is well-known (tension side/compression side) and used in construction not only with metals but also with other materials like carbon fibre and wood. Just think of archery bows, boat and plane construction, race-cars and even modern bridges building. However, the necessary forces to stretch the metal are lower than to compress it, so long before compression ripples can occur, we will se microscopic rupture cracks in the stretched surface steel (= SHINAE). Now if we remember how we broke a piece of steel-wire as boys without appropriate tools ( perhaps old pliers ), we experienced that bending it back and forth weakend the structural integrity so much that it broke eventually. Using more speed, we even felt the generated heat in the wire! So bending back a bent blade could remain without visible and practical damage in case the bend was rather shallow. Also, depending on the physical features of and the steels used in a blade, a bend might occur at lower or higher stress impact. Thus, correcting a bend might have quite different results, and in case we see SHINAE, there will most likely remain a weaker spot in the blade even if the SHINAE could be ground out! My explanation for ripples in a BOHI or on a SHINOGI-JI is, as explained above, probably caused by a narrow MIGAKI-BO working on a not perfectly fine ground surface. If MIGAKI-JI is carefully executed in several steps, this could be avoided, I think, as we see on many blades. I would not consider the ripples as KIZU.

Someone posted about Yamashiro no Kami Kunishige recently. I had sold all my yari except this one. I began to wonder how this was actually signed, so I took it down to check. Then I found this old thread and realized that I had not updated it since before the famous polish!

Just to give an impression of length.

The decoration? Thus. The aogai abalone inlay is falling off like dandruff. The saya has a little ring for the yari jirushi.