paulb

Thanks Guido for some excellent work. Much appreciated. regards Paul

Hi, I think it likely there will be another NTHK shinsa in London or close by. It is certainly being discussed at the moment. The earliest it would be likely to happen would be Autumn 2007 If I had to guess I would think it more likely to take place some when in 2008 rahter than 2007. If you drop me an email off board with your contact details.I will gladly keep you updated as and when I hear something more definate Paul

Im not a betting man but if i was I would say no I dont think it is. However I cant really see the hada. One of the strongest indicators of Tadayoshi school work is the very tight ko-itame hada, known as konuka or rice bran hada. This was used consistently through all generations. Also they produce hamon which regardless of shape had a thick nioi guchi with ko-nie running through (more in the early smiths lesss in the later ones until you get to 8th. gen.) I cant see either of these details in your blade but that may be a combination of the polish and photos. My main reason for doubting it is a Tadayoshi blade is that they made few naginata. in more than 20 years of collecting Hizen work I havent seen a hamon either on a sword or in references that looks like the one on your sword. The mei doesnt match any I have seen. Put those together and the most likely result is that it is not Tadayoshi school work. But as said before it is a good looking thing and theres a lot to enjoy in it. Also remember that trying to see the finer detail mentioned above is very difficult without seeing the sword first hand. Enjoy it and carry on looking I would be interested to hear what you find out abourt it.

Forgot a couple of points, not least that regardless of who made it it is a good looking sword with a lot to look at and enjoy. With regard to the signature: 1. The shape of the blade looks like a nagamaki-naoshi, a shortened pole arm. 2. If this was originally a nagamaki or naginata and shortened the original mei would have been lost. So unless the original smith also shortened the blade (which I rhink would be very unlikely) The mei would have to be by someone else. Either the man who shortened it put the name of the original maker on it to preseve its identity, or he thought he could add value by putting on a highly regarded signature. 3. If it was originally made in this form then I think it very likely to be gimei.

There are nine generations of the mainline Tadayoshi school. In the vast majority of cases they signed Tachi-mei on long swords and Katana-mei on Wakazashi. The early smiths also made Tanto and some, but few Naginata. They have always been very popular, as a result they have been copied and many, very many, gimei blades exist, some very good quality ones others not so good, The mei on this blade does not look right for the manline family or daimei from the leading students. The Hamon is not what one would normally associate with this school, although again they did make various styles (the vast majority Sugha) Based on the images (first two) I think this is very likely to be gimei. Paul B

In 1638 the length of wakazashi was limited to a max of 51.4cm by the Tokugawa government. If a non samurai had a valuable blade over this length and they wanted to remain within the law it does not seem unreasonable that they would try and retain the mei in this way. Having said that I dont ever remember seeing one before.

Its an interesting point John and a difficult one on which to reach a conclusion. The basic view expressed in most texts is that form follows function, therefore the fine aspects of sword design and manufacturer were achieved in attempting to improve the cutting ability and toughness of the blade. I think this is generally true in Koto blades but as you point out in the long and relatively peaceful Edo period and at a time when improved communication meant local differences in raw materials were reduced, Smiths started to experiment with more flambouyant hamon design. Personally I think this had more to do with trying to differentiate their work from all the others. These designs had little to do with improving the functionality of the blade. The basis of the Shin-shinto movement was to get back to the "purity" of earlier times and once again produce blades where the function dictated the form. For me WW2 blades muddy the view, with masses of machine made, half machine half hand finished and completely handmade work it is difficult to compare these works to other periods. Yasukuni enthusiasts woud argue that these blades alo followed the function/form criteria. How well they achieved it is a matter of opinion and debate.

how about made by one and shortened or re-tempered by another? seen other swords that have two signatures where one was the original smith the second the person who modified it. Just a train of thought

Originally Kane Michi then O-Kane Michi (Great Kane Michi) shortenned to O-Michi chinese reading of O-Michi= Dai Do

Dennis, Based on what can be seen in the picture I would be confident that what you have is not a second world war blade. More likely a shinto piece from the mid 1700s and therefore traditionally made. The original Daido worked in the 1570s and depending which references you go to was the founder of the Mishina school or/ and the Daido school. A number of subsequent generations used the daido (also read O-Michi or great Michi) name with various different titles. If you bought this as a ww2 sword I think you did very well (assuming you would prefer a shinto traditionaly made sword)

The most expensive Katana sold in a UK salesroom was a kiyomaru blade. If memory serves correctly it sold for more than $450K. If the vendor knows the smiths history it is reasonable to assume they should also know the blades true value. Therefore if it is not very expensive please be very careful.

Thanks for that Rich, I agree that the NBTHK needs to say aomething. So far the silence is deafening. and the longer they go without making a statement the greater the speculation and potential for damage. You can feel the experts (often wrong but never in doubt) coming out of the woodwork to fuel the fire.

Milt, this is a cause of major concern. Can you confirm the source of this information? i.e. forum and author? I have heard a number of stories coming out of Japan but without knowing their origins it is difficult to guage the accurracy. If they are accurrate I am afraid there could be considerable effect on collectors worldwide.

A sword that has been valued and appreciated throughout its life will generally have a good habaki. However this isnt just a case of material used. Many good swords do have gold foil or shakudo and gold, but an equal number have copper or silver. The material used is a result of the taste of the owner. What is important is how well its made and its design and whether these are in sympathy with the sword. there is, of course, always the risk of an unscrupulous dealer putting a high quality habaki on a mediocre blade to attempt to make it look higher quality than it is.

Hi Darren, yes I would go along with a sort of sanbon-sugi. certainly typical mino and kanemoto style. dont worry about the missing "no" in the mei

Darren, go to http://www.northerntokensociety.co.uk site. it has all the contact details on there. I have no doubt they can help you a lot. Welcome to the world of the Japanese sword!!

Hi Darren, As Peter said an interesting sword. While I dont think you have halved its value by cleaning the nakago you certainly havent done it any favours. One of the keys to judging the age of a blade is the colour and condition of the nakago so cleaning it not only makes it look unsightly it also makes dating more difficult. With regard to the blade itself. personally I cant judge with any certainty from the photos. The hamon is ok for Mino and seki (Noshu) If I had to guess earlist would be Sue-mino (1470-1590) but I am more inclined to put it late shinto. it is always difficult trying to judge from photos, with few exceptions it is very difficult to capture detail of hada and hamon. Where are you based? I know you bought the sword in Brighton do you live in the south? I would strongly recommend joining the Nortern Token Society, although they meet in Manchester they do have country members who recieve their newsletter. There a lot of keen students who would be happy to help you through the early stages of collecting and study.

The most well known polisher in the UK is A.V. Norman. I beleive he was trained by or worked with Kenji Mishina when he lived in the UK. I have seen examples of his work which is of a very high standard. This is confirmed by his backlog which is not too different from that of the better Japanese polishers.