drdata

Not sure when the star stamping started. I've an October '43 Kanehide with the star and small seki stamp. Would be interested in seeing pics of the blade/hamon if you have any. Regards

Need better blade pics. Tend to agree this does not seem right. Nakago (tang) seems very aged for WW II and the mei (sig) looks weak. Regards

Chris, I'm honored to be among the first to say "Thank you" for taking the time to write this up. The RJT program seems pretty mysterious and this helps shed a bright light on what was happening there. Perhaps this will some day factor this into the "no stamped tangs" import policy, which I believe currently lumps the Good with the bad and prevents star-stamped from being legally imported into Japan. Regards,

Me too! Thanks Chris, George, et all. Once again very interesting and informative.

Interesting. I own a star stamped Kanehide and was thinking the posted pics did seem similar. Some areas of mine have a pronounced "grain" that I would call itame, but to my untrained eye the majority seemed to be grainless. Interesting to see this example confirmed as itame. So much to learn. Cheers

Yes, sadly, the secret of bid sniping is well let out. If its real, and cheap, expect it to nearly double in last 3 seconds.

Good advice. You can search for "Japanese sword", and scan down the summary listings until you see one with bids, and a price > 300. Unless you are wanting to see a fake, then stop by all the other ones. Even a machine made gunto goes for 800 + these days on ebay, have seen some as high as $1,600. Regards,

real. As in, really made in china. Utter machine made crap. HTHs

Interesting. Thanks for keeping an interesting topic alive. Seems to me that such a policy encourages the removal of stamps, thereby denying future generations ubu-nakato, which is bad form. I understood shinsa rules to specifically state that an item is to be judged on its own merits, not based on when it was made. Its not the sword's fault as to when it was forged, after all. I mean, if a sword happens to made for the military, because its war time, and certain conformity must be imposed, to include the need for high-quality/cutting tests, then an inspection mark of acceptance is the way its done. Seems like extended periods of peace, wherein swords are made as art for wealthy patrons rather than as as killing tools for warriors, is the exception rather than the norm? Was not a sword forged for a samurai in (insert non-showato period here) meant as a weapon first and then, perhaps, as art second? Seems Japan has a hard time dealing with the ghosts of WW II for sure. Warriors fought with honor in all wars, and to diminish their efforts and tools, just because the exit status was less than desirable, is to commit on ongoing wrong. Somehow I feel if Japan had won the war these "guntos" would have higher esteem, no? Regards

George, thanks much for the informative reply. Clear I have much to learn. I tried running the link through google translate (and had bookmarked that site for good gunto info), I have to admit it the output made little sense. I will research the other sources you mention and monitor this thread with interest. In the end suspect its too much political baggage to deal with war blades, good or not, so they ban all, except those they mysteriously allow. Regards

Hey all, my first post. Its because of this thread that I joined this fine site, after lurking for a bit of course. And yes, I have a dog in this race. A star stamped kanehide (edited to correct spelling) made in 43. Looks like gendiato to me, and I paid a commensurate price. Shinza rules aside, does anyone have a definitive reference that documents that star meant traditionally made with tamahgne (sp), etc? I have seen the sites that all seem to quote the same bit about the what the Jumei Tosho (S/stamp) means, but nothing in the form of an actual Japanese government document. Asked differently, what is the most original/definitive source of info on what star is supposed to mean? Once that is confirmed the debate can switch to why or why not such a blade is allowed into shinza. The Pepin samurai sword site mentions that star stamped have received papers, but no example is cited. I mention as they seem a well-respected long-time US dealer. Seems that such a thing should be easy to prove, and the lack of same makes me think (worry) that there are no star marked/papered examples. Perhaps this is because the tang stamp was first ground off and now the owner does not know/want to admit thy have a "low brow war blade". Thanks all. Harry