Geraint

Dear Chris. Perhaps it's just been added but I see tsukushi naginata just above the rather Chinese looking glaive and the fukuro naginata, no? All the best.

Dear Lucian. Start with what you have, as you say the hada and hamon are at best indistinct at present but can you make out the boshi by any chance? The descriptions of sugata for swords are generally distinct but you do run up against variations so don't be too surprised that a sword has one feature that doesn't fit the classification. You say that you have read that such blades were cut down polearms or imitations of them and therein lies the key. You have considered the possibility that is is o suriage but there is nothing here to indicate that at present, the nakago is properly shaped with the nakago jiri intact and a single mekugi ana, so unless there is a feature that contradicts this it should be safe to assume that the nakago is ubu. So the question is when was it common for smiths to produce this sugata just as it is? The soe bi fades out and you have concluded that there is no sign of distortion in the blades surface so this was not done in a patch to remove a flaw, so far so good. Have you considered that it is just a weakly cut hi? Is the condition of the nakago really old enough to support your Nambokucho suggestion, or could it possibly be that this sword is an early Shinto blade? If we discount o suriage, in other words this is an ubu sword, then what should the length tell you about the possibility of it being Nambokucho? Just some thoughts for you to play with, I like the sword and I hope that you end up getting it polished so that you can really see what is going on. All the best.

Dear Michael. This appears to be a perfectly genuine yari blade of a form that is usually called hira sankaku, that is triangular with one wide flat. It is of course out of polish and please, whatever you do don't try to polish it as that will likely ruin it, it needs to be done by a properly trained specialist. You might try rubbing the blade only with an oiled cloth, careful, yari are likely to bite! As to age it is certainly pre 1900 but they are hard to date so a safe statement would be Edo period which covers about 1600 to 1850. One tip, pardon the pun, is that the part where the blade flairs out to the shoulder above the tang, called the kerakubi, is a little long which sometimes suggest an older blade. I'm sure I speak for us all when I ask, how about the tanto? All the best.

Sorry Eric, nothing showing for me. All the best.

From what you have shown so far the reading is, 'Uda Kuni....' The horimono on the blade will be a bonji which I can't yet identify. Of course gimei is a possibility but regardless the koshirae is very nice and worth taking some care with. All the best.

Dear Ken. The rondel dagger is a Royal Navy Midshipman's dirk, you really scored with this lot, oh and the sort of Japanese paper knife that was my first! Enjoy your expedition. All the best.

Well I'm liking it more and more, still not sure about the pearls but we'll wait and see. The blade will repay some careful study, see here for starters, http://www.nihontocr...a_Nihon_no_Toko.html (Scroll down to Uda.) The plate near the kogai slot would no doubt have echoed the one on the kozuka slot but would have included the kurikata, perhaps a ring form like the example I linked to. A very nice koshirae and a blade with some potential, what's not to like? All in all a very nice thing to have found! All the best.

I'd have to agree with Colin regarding the cabochons, easier to judge when you have it in hand. The' American Indian arrowhead' would have been something like the one here, https://nihontoart.c...gh-quality-koshirae/ though probably not of that quality. Overall this looks interesting and, post climbing expedition, I'll look forward to seeing some more. All the best.

Dear Ken. Looks interesting but as you surmise we can't tell a great deal from these photographs. So far I think it is genuine and I would be looking aroundf ebi koshirae, though as so often with tanto mounts there is a great degree of freedom of expression and it does not conform to ebi koshirae entirely. It does seem to be missing a decorative kurikata which might have been a ring mounting for the sageo. Look forward to seeing more when you get it. All the best.

Dear Howard. It doesn't matter how cheap it was, you could have left it! Now you are stuck with it so yes, it is modern, see here for the theme, https://collections....aka-unknown-Japanese I see that Mauro has got there before me. All the best.

Hi Nathan. These are Chinese, paired swords are a thing. I'm sure that a search will throw up quite a few. All the best.

Dear Adam. It is perhaps the polish that has changed this from osoraku zukuri to something else, I think I can see a spot on the shinogi where the yokote ought to be but it's clearly been ignored by the polisher. Some swords do have hamon that can be labelled as one thing or another, many have hamon that can best be described as a combination of features. Here is one from Aoi Art. "Nie Deki, wide Suguha, deep Nioikuchi. In Ha, there are many Sunagashi, Kinsuji and Yo. Boshi is Midarekomi Hakikake style." All the best.

Dear Shaun. The date for this tsuba is approximately 2022, it's a brand new Chinese fake! Keep looking but best avoid Ebay until you are really sure what you are getting. Edit to add: Sorry Shaun, a bit more time now. Just to give you something to go on here are some of the signs. The overall shape is poor, not regular, the seppa dai, the oval in the middle is irregular and the tang hole is bad, on these fakes it is usually rounded off rather than the shape of the tang. The design is poorly defined, muddy if you like, and the patina corresponds to the typical three colour attempt that seem to be the norm for these, quite unlike Japanese patina. The signature is very poorly done, normally these would be chased into the metal, these are cast in along with the rest of the tsuba. If you are interested then have a look at some of the commercial sites, here are a couple to start with, https://www.Japanese...tegory/tsuba-kodogu/ and http://www.nihonto.us/TSUBA 1.htm For educational reading you could also have a look here, https://www.shibuiswords.com/tsuba.htm Feel free to ask about any of the above. All the best.

Dear Mario. A very minor typo on Jean's part, search for Jakushi tsuba, one example here, https://www.Japanese...hi-tsuba-quite-nice/ And another here, All the best.

And just a little from the Naunton Collection. " The Mitsuhiro family of Yagami in Hizen specialised in designs of the Hundred monkeys, Hundred horses, "Hundred anything", class, often very minutely and finely chased, the work of the first dating from the middle to the end of the Eighteenth Century, but that of the second Mitsuhiro being the more delicate of the two. That style was also followed by one Taira Hattori Yoshitsugu of Nagasaki, a specimen of whose work in my possession dates from 1756. Although less involved groups of animals had been made at a much earlier date, these three workers brought the style to an analytical perfection of technique quite peculiar to them, and the dated piece is mentioned above because some writers have placed Mitsuhiro I. circa 1800 whereas the probability is that he worked circa 1750 -1770." All the best.

Dear Luca. Have a look in your messages. All the best.

Yep! I think we can tell that you are excited! Remember, whatever the outcome this is a genuine Japanese sword and there is nothing like having your own example to research to get you in the groove. For starters have a look here, First step, what do the characters actually say? Second step what shape is the nakago/tang, is the mei in the usual place for this smith, are the file marks correct? Third step how does the handwriting compare to known examples? (For good reasons most people will look at the overall shape of the blade first, then perhaps the hamon, the design of the hardened edge, next the grain of the metal and finally the nakago/tang. So far all we have to go on is the mei. Enjoy the journey. All the best.

Dear Nathan. I understand your excitement and there is no question that this is a real Japanese sword, rest easy. There is however a long tradition in Japan of adding false signatures to swords to increase their value, obviously the better the swordsmith the more likely this is to happen. That's why I cautioned that the registration card describes the sword as with a signature...... I haven't had time to compare the signature yet but will do so, meanwhile you could start looking for swords by this man which have NBTHK or NTHK papers. These are more of a guarantee that it really is by him. While you are at it an overall photograph of the whole blade, without the habaki if possible, would be useful to us. All the best.

Hi Nathan. Just to note that the registration card records what the sword is, hence signed Nagamichi, it is not a guarantee that the signature is correct. Look forward to seeing some more pictures. All the best.

Dear Nike. It depends on what you mean by civilian, as John says this is a Showato and it seems rather a lot of money for what it is. All the best.

Hi Grev. Bizen no kuni Osafune ju Kawachi no Kami Sukesada saku? Compare here, https://www.aoijapan...wachi-kami-sukesada/ So not a WWII arsenal blade I would think. No guarantee of it being shoshin. All the best.

Dear Teddy. You have taken an unusual decision in having a significant proportion of the major design element, the bird, obscured by the seppa when mounted. Was that a conscious choice? All the best.

Dear Ron. What follows is purely personal observation, take it with a pinch of salt. There are quite a few Shigetaka blades available to check this with. As I understand it we are essentially looking at first and second generation Shigetaka, sources mention that the Harima Daijo title lasted to the third but I have not come across this third generation. The mei of the shodai is described as wide, in other words the kanji are rather spreading sideways, whereas the nidai is described as more vertical. Both have distinctive 'handwriting', I find the nidai especially notable in this case. So, to your sword. First off we don't have the whole sword or even the whole nakago to work with so any clues from them are absent. First observation, the nakago appears to have quite a bit of age to it and the mei seems rather faint in its cutting, I can't see any tagane makura. There may be yasurime but I can't make them out. Second, as you look at papered mei note that they seem to be pretty uniform in starting just next to the mekugi ana, some swords exist with rather a lot of information on the nakago but in your case I would expect to see the mei starting just to the lower right of the mekugi ana. Third, the handwriting. Yours certainly does not look like the nidai to my eye. I am looking particularly at the Taka kanji as it's the one I can see clearly. The lower section is quite distinctive in the ni dai with a consistent curve to the stroke at the right; this as absent in yours. The shodai tends to have a very straight horizontal stroke here, again yours does not. My conclusion, and please remember it is only mine, would be that this is not what it purports to be. As always this does not mean it is not a good sword. I am sure that others will chime in here and of course the ultimate test would be to send it for shinsa, personally I would save my money on that idea with this sword. All the best.

Dear Ray. Gene is the guy who wrote the letter, Rob is the owner of the sword. All the best.

Dear JJV. Welcome to NMB! Can we have a first name so that we can address you properly? The menuki on your sword are supposed to represent a kabuto and tachi, helmet and slung sword. The detail is not clear which suggests that they are low quality pressings rather than hand carved. If you look at the back of the habaki you should be able to tell if it is silver foiled or not, look for a copper core with thin foil folded over the back edge. Underneath the wrap on the tsuka your sword has silk rather than the more usual same, this does happen so no worries. In your research try to focus on swords that have NBTHK papers, these are pretty reliable opinions as to the authenticity of the sword and the signature. There are many swords with fake signatures called gimei so checking papered examples is the best route. Start to get s feel for the handwriting style and the shape of the nakago or tang. Above all look at the FAQs and search how to care for your sword, don't be tempted to clean anything. Enjoy the journey. All the best.