Geraint

Dear All. I think defining nanako shi as non artisans is causing a problem here. Quite evidently the work, especially at its finest, requires great skill and there were workers who specialised in it. We know that not all nanako is top flight. All the best.

Dear All. I am certainly not knowledgable enough to offer an attribution on this tanto which we all agree is rather lovely. However here are some thoughts to ponder, or not, of course. Some years ago now the Token Society of Great Britain managed to secure a loan of the exhibition, "The Beauty of Shinsakuto" and bring it to London. It was a knockout! Members were priviledged to have both a hands on viewing and a later meeting with Sumitani Masamine who brought along an utsushi of the famous Nipongo su yari which was awesome. The relevance to this topic is this, swordsmiths have often challenged themselves to understand the methods and working practices of great masters by producing utsushi mono. The examples in this exhibition were not copies of the sugata married to an ubu nakago, if the subject sword was o-suriage and had multiple mekugi ana then so would the copy. The smith made every attempt to produce an exact copy, not as a means of deception but as a path to understanding what had been achieved. In this context if a Hizen smith had set out to follow this practice then one would certainly not expect him to use typical Hizen hada, using that as a kantei point here is not useful. As far as the chikei formation goes then I have always associated imozura rather more with a feature inside or associated with the hamon than purely in the ji, but as I say I know very little. If you find the idea of smiths generating forgeries unpalatable then reflect on the culture of the time when daimyo were certainly not afraid to have a sword shortened and then attributed to a famous smith so that it could become a gift worthy of the recipient. Everyone knew what was happening but went along with it. Of course it is also not beyond the bounds of possibility that the nakago of this tanto was altered by an unscrupulous dealer after it had left the hands of the smith. I am aware that none of these reflections are in any way going to resolve the problem of the dual attribution but I hope they give some food for thought. All the best.

Dear Jeff. It is not uncommon for tsuba reproductions to be cast in brass then covered with a dark patina which is strategically polished off to reveal a goden colour. It seems that this might be the case here judging by the colouration around the nakago ana. All the best.

Dear James. It is not entirely unusual to have gold menuki, what you do next is of course up to you. I would love to see a picture of the entire koshirae but the really nice wrap is going to need redoing and you need to find someone who can do it justice. While this is happening you could remove the menuki and replace them with similar shakudo examples. For me the decision would hang on whether the koshirae was original or not, I note that it does not seem to have seppa, do you have a feeling that this has been put together or perhaps the tsuba has been swopped out? The tsuka appears to be original and attractive so my perspective would be re wrap just as it is including these menuki. Dealers and collectors have always been inclined to swap fittings, more money to be made selling the boxed fittings and putting together a koshirae. Personally I would regard that as heresy and would want to retain anything original about the sword. If the seppa are indeed missing then you might have to change the Namban tsuba for something thinner, add seppa, and that would change the dynamic somewhat. Looking forward to a picture of the whole thing and what others have to say. All the best.

Dear Chris. Now that Mauro has confirmed the translation of the mei it is time to ask yourself whether such a maker would fit tanzaku in the rather crude way that these have been secured and indeed if he would fit one of them right over them top of the broken peg. Regardless of your conclusion they are very nice menuki. All the best.

Dear Florian. Just some thoughts to add. Like you I have etched soft metals but this link, https://needlewatcher.com/marketplace/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CN_Sugaie-Dragon-tsuba.pdf suggests the aqua forte or nitric acid approach for iron. It is perhaps the case that a generalised use of the term lacquer here might be less than helpful. The term I am used to is stopping out varnish and this is a much softer medium than Japanese lacquer and can be removed with a solvent thus avoiding the use of heat. I attach images of a tsuba I own which shows an etched design, there is something quite distinctive about the outline of the etched areas which would suggest that this one has been etched but then not subject to yakite which would give a much more nuanced surface and design outline I feel. All the best.

Dear Rieker. The same answer applies I'm afraid. Not Japanese and not old. Hope this doesn't put you off altogether and that you are not into them for too much. Have a look at the dealer section toward the bottom of the menu and check out some of the swords there. All the best.

Dear Dirk. You may already know these links but they do point to a significant level of interaction/influence between Kozenji, Mino and Kaga works. https://www.legacyswords.com/portfolio/kozenji-school-fuchigashira/ https://www.legacyswords.com/portfolio/owari-kinko-tsuba/ Given the associations then it might indeed be a close call. I would be interested to know hat in particular sparked your question? All the best.

Dear Luba. Welcome to NMB! As you probably already know this is a lifetime pursuit in terms of learning and understanding so be prepared for some serious addiction. Some of the information you are looking for can be found under the FAQ system tab at the top of the page, including suggested reading. You might also spend some time looking at the Nihonto info tab and the Downloads tab, a lot to get your teeth into. I think most people would suggest that looking at bad swords or fakes hurts the eyes but to be able to distinguish fake from real go to Browse and scroll down, there is a section devoted to fake swords. To see good swords look to the dealer section or you might try NihontoWatch which you will find at the top of this General Discussion page. Feel free to ask questions, there is a huge ammount of hard won wisdom at your disposal here. Enjoy! All the best.

Dear Erik. I am not sure if this article will add to your understanding but here it is. https://www.nihontocraft.com/japanese_sword_papers.html Information relating to fake papers is near the end of the article. All the best.

Dear Marcin. While I can understand the sense of connection with the mon I would ne very cautious about pairing this zutsu with a shingunto. The metal saya and fitings of the shingunto are almost bound to do damage to the zutsu which is quite a rare thing and should be preserved. Indeed you may find that the shingunto koshirae does not fit as most zutsu taper down after the tsuba space and do not allow for hangers on the saya. A lovely thing to own and perhaps to display alongside the shingunto? All the best.

Dear All. Surely not! https://www.bonhams.com/auction/32016/lot/304/a-pair-of-mixed-metal-tsuba-edo-period-19th-century-2/ Apologies for hurting the eyes. All the best.

Dear Jonathan. Just a couple of things to consider. The last photograph in your first post shows what looks like a hamon with no discernable activity and spots in the top of the gunome. Both these features might be seen on an oil temepred blade, specifically Showato. However your sword has yakidashi, a feature that I have not noted on Showa blades. You mention that the sword does not have masame hada which puzzles me, certain specific schools do have this hada but from Shinto it is usually evident in the shinogi ji whereas other forms of hada are evident below the shinogi. If you can discern ko itame hada on your blade does this run over into the shinogi ji? It might be useful to know what you can see in the boshi, is it midare komi? With the sword in hand what activities can you see in the hamon? For an oil quenched sword one would expect none, but that could also be a feature of a Shinshinto sword so this may not help. All this assumes that the sword did not come with papers but if it did please tell us what that says.I am looking forward to other opinions on this one. All the best.

Dear Dean. Just in case you don't know it is in Naval or Kaigunto mounts. I am sure we would all like tosee some more images, perhaps posted in the Military Swords section. All the best.

And one to compare here, https://www.sho-shin.com/shinto-mino.html (Scroll down to the third sword.) Can we have a name to address you by please and more photographs of your sword? All the best.