ROKUJURO

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 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.

Probably not a BOKUTO but a CHATO or a "doctor's sword". But very nice!

Hi Jake, in my opinion, it is unlikely to be stag-horn which is a bone material, consisting mainly of calcium phosphate. If it is not some polished quartz, it is probably glass as Ray says. An expert may be able to polish it so PINOCCHIO would have clear view again!

In summer 1977, there was a high-quality sword show in KOBE. With a preparation time of ten (= ten) years, they had gathered swords from private collections, and there were three MASAMUNE blades which had never been shown in public. I could imagine that there might be a few more hidden from view.

John, if I had an old car or even an airplane, I would rather replace any damaged or doubtful part before using it. But with genuine antiques, I am on your side with keeping it as authentic as possible.

I tried to make photos of the ICHIMAI BOSHI but I could not capture it properly. Instead, I drew a 'fictious' line of how the HAMON goes.

As Kevin wrote above. There are many blades showing fine fissures on the MUNE, and some collectors are afraid that this might be flaws. But it is just a welding-seam on blades where the SHINGANE has not been encapsulated completely. This is done on purpose to leave the MUNE somewhat softer than the rest of the blade to block or deflect an opponent's strike. Comimg back to ICHIMAI-BOSHI, this is a feature that has mostly to do with TSUCHI-OKI (= application of clay before quenching/YAKI IRE). As described above, you can create a fully hardened KISSAKI by widening the YAKIBA when it comes close to the YOKOTE. Often in this case, the HAMON makes a more or less sharp turn back so it does not appear in the KISSAKI. Depending on the polish, you would not always identify an ICHIMAI BOSHI by looking at the MUNE, but if the TOGISHI used HADORI, this could be more obvious.

Jeff, in a true ICHIMAI BOSHI, you will not see a HAMON. In most cases, the HAMON will be getting wider towards the YOKOTE so that it fills the width of the JI. I have a blade with ICHIMAI BOSHI, but it is difficult to catch in a photo. Maybe I can try tomorrow. You wrote;....is it always apparent in the topology of the metal as to how it was tempered.... TEMPERING is not HARDENING! Tempering (YAKIMODOSHI in Japanese) does not produce a HAMON, but hardening through quenching (= YAKIIRE) in water does.

Ron, TACHI-MEI looks like KANEKADO to me. MEKUGI-ANA do not have the burrs removed which may indicate a late manufacture. The KOSHIRA-E (not Koshirai) would possibly confirm young age.

Willy, depending on where this KANJI was chiseled, it could have different reading and meaning. A "normal" photo showing the whole item in context could be helpful.

Micro-welding can also be done by goldsmiths with a very small, very hot hydrogen-oxygen flame welding apparatus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEX5xpKuhUw Dale, in your case, you might also have the missing MIMI of this TSUBA re-installed!

Sorry Oli, I don't have books on TOSOGU, but other members will certainly be able to help.

I think I can read TOSHIYUKI.

This low resolution photo is not helpful; it could be anything. FUCHI are usually not signed or marked on the inside.

James, all NAKAGO photos (except one with a date) cannot be read as they are upside-down. Please do not shoot the photos at an angle but right from above. The TSUBA and FUCHI photos are not oriented correctly either. The NANAKO-JI of the FUCHI is of low quality, the horses are hopefully a bit better (if I could see them properly). It is difficult to give an opinion of a sword only with photos, so these should be as good as possible. Just look at how swords are presented in books !

Jack, I get the impression that this is a modern item. No handle, no patina, a bit crudely made, 'signature' machine (?) stamped and upside-down - all that might speak for a non-Japanese origin.