ROKUJURO

And you should not forget the BEHRENS collection, auctioned off in Paris (I think 1911) with a four volume catalogue by H. Joly.

Michel, one of our experts will tell you more about it, but generally said: It is easier to fake a signature than a blade, so in comparing your sword with a certified example, you have to look at the work itself. All features of a blade have to be considered, and the MEI (signature) is the last factor of evidence. A "good" faker would perhaps have had an original at hand to copy, but many just had an OSHIGATA (if at all) as template.

Exactly! You need a number of especially formed stones which are not usable on other blades. It is just more hassle than blades. But on the other hand, your YARI does not need a full polish, so if you could get into contact with a reliable TOGISHI in the U.S., it should be feasible.

Thank you Piers, for your help! His name does not appear on my screen, I only see W.H. Might be a technical issue on my side? Polishing YARI seems indeed to be more difficult than sword blades. Usually, their steel is very hard and the surface to be treated is often relatively small, so TO-ISHI are easily damaged (= becoming hollowed-out).

It's probably my old eyes. I don't see a name. You can add it to your profile, so it appears with every post. Does not hurt. As for the rust removal, you would only need one TOGISHI.

Hmmmm....

In Japanese (translated) descriptions, I have never read these terms, so I don't think there is a problem (until we create one).

Jonathan, HATARAKIMONO (features) in traditionally made Japanese blades should be visible without magnification. As the name says, KINSUJI should be streaks of NIE, appearing golden. But I have to admit that many of these features are difficult to capture in photos. I don't know black NIE.

Bonjour Michel, NAKAGO (= tang/la soie) photos should be oriented straight vertically (blade-tip upwards), so a signature can be read. NAKAGO, SHIRA-SAYA, and MEKUGI-ANA are not handguards; you got something mixed up. A TSUBA is a handguard.

W.H., please sign all posts at least with your first name so we could address you politely. It is a rule here on NMB. I suggest you have the spider rust removed as soon as possible before it creates more damage.

Well, they have seen the blade in-hand, which is much better than photos. Do you see HADA? Do you see KINSUJI? If yes, I am wrong and it is not machine-made.

Jonathan, There is still another thought: The seller could not advertise the sword as wartime blade as these a not allowed in Japan. So perhaps he chose a more "creative" description.

Thank you Steve, for your efforts! This narrow knife has seen some use and years, so you never know if the maker is still listed somewhere. Might well be one of the hundreds of little forges all over Japan.

Thank you Steve! Very helpful! The second KANJI was probably chiseled while running.....

Jonathan, a BOSHI is never burnished, and yours looks o.k. The blade is generally in fine condition. The HAMON looks like an oil quenched one, so if I am correct, it is a machine-made WW II military blade.

Faustus, I am willing to hold another TSUBA forging seminar this summer in case there was interest. My proposal for a weekend-workshop would be JULY 11th and 12th, 2026. Three (3) participants max per workshop. I will notify those directly who showed interest in that event before. I can help with finding acommodation nearby. TSUBA forging workshop 2026 GB.pdf

P.S. The long text on the blade is probably only advertising....

Hi Bruno, interesting KIRI HA ZUKURI blade, signed AMAHIDE. You have already been interested in AMAHIDE in 2012, but this blade looks older than WW II to me. As you may know, date and smith's name are chiseled and read vertically, so it is a great help to orient especially the NAKAGO images accordingly. The NENKI is not quite clear to me. It looks a bit like ANSEI 7 but that would not make much sense, so I don't know.

Dear Sirs, may I kindly ask your help in reading a signature on an older Japanese kitchen-knife? The MEI (SADANAGA or SADAMITSU?) is sloppily chiseled, and above is a faint stamp very difficult to capture with my mobile phone.

Jake, of couse the metal is formed and finished BEFORE any organic or non-organic material is inserted! In case the eye was formed from glass, there would be no aging or colouring (in human time). Natural crystal would also keep its original colour, however, both materials may well have a yellowish tint from the beginning. Also, in case the eye was set in with URUSHI or a pitch-like material, there might be an effect from that. Glass in such small dimensions is not at all "pliable", so there will be no press-fit or similar. KASHIRA and related shaped metal objects are mostly formed in a hollow/bowl-shaped steel mold, not on a "dome" shaped tool.

Hi Piers, for the reading of the MEI, I will have to post it in the TRANSLATION section, unless you could read it. I did not see the tiny stamp above the MEI, when I first got it. I am sorry for the bad photos; I'll try to make better ones. A very shallow "hollow grind" is something that is done in the production of kitchen knives. At home, only few people have a water-cooled stone grinding wheel with more than 100 cm in diameter! Piers, for more convenience, you absolutely should install three of them with different grit! In daily use, HOCHO are ground/sharpened on flat waterstones, and when a knife has become older, the hollow grind is long gone.

I sent them a notice on the NAGAMAKI. There are many more mistakes in their descriptions, and it seems many items are in bad condition: Cleaned NAKAGO, corroded blades a.s.o.

Dale, the brown-red material is very likely coral, but it could also be red jasper or carnelian, just from the colour. But I don't know if these stones were available in Japan at that time. Natural crystal is a kind of quartz (= silica/silicon dioxide, agate, amethyst, flint, Arkansas and Ouashita wetstones, and others). You can create almost any colour with enamel, however, this will always be flat and, as far as I have seen in Japanese context, applied in a kind of metallic frame.

Yes, I like it also, and especially the beautiful wood which is probably KEYAKI.

While BOKUTO literally means "wooden sword" which is basically used in martial arts training, a decorated item like this would probably have another purpose. It could have been a memorial or presentation item, but it could have served as CHATO as well. In my understanding, "Doctor's sword" or "CHATO" are not exactly describing terms for the object itself but for its use.