Geraint

Hi John. The face of the kozuka depicts Shoki, the demon queller, who carries a ken. In spite of his fearsome name Shoki is often shown in a rather humorous way with oni hiding from him. This one seems to be hanging from a bell behind his back. All the best.

Thank you so much Moriyama san. Unfortunately the quality does not justify that mei. Ho, hum, still pleasant enough. All the best.

Dear All. Picked up a kozuka which I rather liked but when it comes to fittings artists I have trouble working out who I am looking at. I think this reads Hiromoto Masasane but would love some help on that. Many thanks for any help. All the best.

Dear Chris. Welcome to NMB! I very much fear that your ken has been ruinously treated by a previous custodian. Looking at the area just above the habaki it seems that someone has drastically thinned down the blade, probably in an effort to remove pitting, and that they too could not remove the habaki. You may be able to remove it but possibly not. When you suggest that the blade still retains a polish I think you might just be seeing whatever that last owner did to the blade and therefore none of the features that would confirm it's age is likely to be visible. Keep it lightly oiled and enjoy it for what it is. All the best.

Dear Vitaly. Just in case you don't know this, each habaki is specific to each sword, you will almost certainly not find one that will fit so you would need to have one made for your blade. Add to that that it won't necessarily fit the saya and you have quite a skilled job on your hands, (or in someone else's). It is often suggested that certain swords are not worth spending money on but I can understand the desire to see it in better shape. Why not just give it a sageo and live with it for a bit? In a year you might feel differently about it. All the best.

Nigel, I think Bazza has edited and reoriented yours. It's a nice looking sword with pleasant koshirae. The handwriting isn't a good match so I would suggest buying it for what it is, not what it might be. All the best.

Dear Ron. I am sorry that I can't answer your question but surely this is a wari kogai rather than an umbari? Either way it is beautiful! All the best.

Just to add, the existing wrap is incorrect in that the crossovers of the ito all go in the same direction rather than alternating. As well as the other stuff. All the best.

Dear Joe. Let me spare Jaques the necessity of replying. Put this image besides yours, the differences should be obvious. Enjoy your sword for what it is. All the best.

Dear Vitaly. The question is why are you looking at it? Look somewhere else, quick! All the best.

Dear All. It is possible that certificates have got mixed up or that the sword Vadim linked to is a different wakizashi. In either case a mumei Fujiwara Takada judgement is not likely to be changed much by a new certificate, so I think the answer to the question is that the certifcate is OK. Perhaps send us the link to the sword in question for more detailed comment, Josh? By the way that's a really nice thing to buy someone as a present. All the best.

Try this one April,https://nbthk-ab2.org/sword-characteristics/ Look for, 'Sword care and cleaning'. Hope this one works for you. All the best.

Dear April. Welcome to NMB! Here is another thread which discusses this smith, (as well as quite a lot of other stuff). It is interesting that this too has an inscription naming the person for whom the sword was made. If you scroll down a bit you will find a link from Grey to a care and handling guide. Once you are familiar with those things we would all love to see photographs of the restored sword. I can't throw any light on the box signature but if it coincides with the time your Father sent the sword to Japan then it is probably the maker. All the best.

Dear Bob. Thank you for deciding to post these, the face of Shoki alone is enough to justify their inclusion! Beautiful set. All the best.

Dear Derek. Some information here, http://www.ksky.ne.jp./~sumie99/fuchikashiramade.html Let us know how it goes. All the best.

Dear Dan. Heed Brian's advice! Because of the association with Musashi this design has been endlessly copied and is widely available in the martial arts fraternity. Look at the shape of the seppa dai, the awkward shaping at the top and bottom and the fact that the punch marks around the nakago ana seem to be the same on both sides. My suspicion is that this is a reproduction that has had a hard life or been deliberatley aged. Have a look at some papered examples and compare, see what you think. All the best.

How unfortunate for Mr Walter Bruno Brix that his name should be proudly appended to such a load of twaddle, and given the nature of the internet there for all time! At least in the UK no one admits to having written the catalogue entries. All the best.

Thank you Piers, that really makes sense now. All the best.

Dear Giordy. Certainly all the swords in the exhibition I referenced were proudly signed by the maker, even though some were direct utsushi of existing well known blades. From time to time you do hear of certain smiths who were very good and whose blades had the mei removed to pass as Koto and by a good smith. In this light I think we are talking about at least three categories utsushi mono, made to investigate technique or demonstrate mastery and signed by the maker, deliberate forgeries, sometimes with a gimei added sometimes left intentionally blank, and blades turned into forgeries by someone who thinks the work could pass as a great smith if only that mei could be removed. Now we are entering all the troubled waters of faking in general. Take a really good Shinto blade, turn it into an o-suriage, add some mekugi ana, taking care to make them spool shaped, add just a hint of provenance and away you go. Do all this badly and you and I might spot it, do it really well and who knows how far it can go? Throw into the mix Daimyo who were 'creating' big name swords when they ran out of real ones for rewards for their retainers. It would be nice to see detailed discussions about why a shinsa team decided that an apparent Koto masterpiece was in fact a fake but it seems such a discussion by experts is not forthcoming. Not sure if any of that is relevant to your enquiry but it got me thinking. All the best.

Dear Jeremy. Quite a normal hi, impossible to tell whether it's ato bori, I think it is Nakahara who says that all hi are ato bori because they are carved after the blade is forged. Some people will look at the open grain inside the hi and suggest that it was carved to obscure those, on the other hand it is quite likely that they were only exposed as the hi was cut so who knows? Unless there are some clear clues one would assume that it is original to the sword. ALl the best. P.S. Love the auto translate: "Horimono carving" A piece of Chilean stick gutter is washed away under the habaki.

Dear Giordy. A new term for me, (there are just so many!) "KONASHIMONO – Shinto blades with some faking to look like koto." (From https://www.samuraisword.com/about-swords/glossary/#1525890402753-70eaa809-a259 ) As oposed to, "UTSUSHI-MONO / UTSUSHIMONO – Copies or recreations of past masterpieces (not to be confused with forgeries)" Given these then perhaps the difference could be characterised as in one case a deliberate attempt to deceive as opposed to an attempt to learn by copying to understand the technique of a master smith. I suppose that those making konashimono would not advertise so very lttle known about them except for Kajihei, about whom more here, https://markussesko.com/2019/12/31/kajihei-鍛冶平/ All the best. Edit to add. Some years ago there was an exhibition called, "The Beauty of Shinsakuto" which brought together works by many of the leading smiths of the day. The exhibition was brought to London by the Token Society who did a translation of the catalogue which was subtitled, "Challenge to Masterpeieces of the Old Japanese Sword". Indeed the word challenge appears throughout the catalogue and I think conveys the spirit of utsushimono very well.

Dear Brian. From the distortionat the mouth of the kodzuka and the fact that the lettering seems raised I would suspect a pressed piece and therefore of no great interest. Not neccessarily a problem for your purchase as another could easily be used should you choose to do so. More important, what's the blade like and how about the other one in the show case? Let us know what happens. All the best.

Congratulations, Kyle! All the best.

Dear Lee. Forgive me for stating the obvious regarding auction houses. The more I look the more this one puzzles me and I don't think the answer will be forthcoming unless someone views it in hand. Like Darrel I thought leather wrap but........... Don't think I have ever seen fuchi kashira like these and I can't match the hilt. The habaki looks as though it is foiled. Perhaps Colin has got it. Just in case you have not seen it I attach a photo of a different style of wrap. All the best.

Hi Lee. Photographs do look good and that kind of wrap always attracts me. Rule 1. Auction houses rarely have sufficient expertise to catalogue swords well and their terms and conditions hedge them around so that they cannot be held responsible in any but the most egregious cases. Rule 2. You really need to see this in hand if you are going to spend some money on it. Rule 3. Don't be lead astray by their estimate,see Rule 1. All the best.