ROKUJURO

Mike, to an extent, the history of your blade remains in the dark without a polish, and its possible beauty is hidden to your eyes. A 'window' is not done to look nice; it helps to decide whether or not a full polish could be worthwhile, and sometimes it is even possible to guess a school. Polish or not polish, that is the question - a difficult decision!.

Mike, there are a number of KOTO MINO smiths of that name . One of these may be your KANETOMO: (Swordmiths database in the NMB research) Kanetomo Koto, Mino no kuni (Eiroku:1558) Chu-jo saku KAN2568 TTp103, ¥2M See also http://www.sho-shin.com/sanami.html Nōshū (濃州) is another name for Mino Province. Hope that helps.

Andrew, I thought everything had been cleared by now, but as you ask again: The blade (signed KANEHISA, as far as I can see on pic 3) is probably not handmade but mass produced, not made with traditional TAMAHAGANE steel but with modern cutting tool steel, not water but oil quenched. It has a HAMON, but very likely no NIE, no NIOI, no HADA and no signs of layering construction. It is a WAKIZASHI with bad active rust on the NAKAGO which may conceal production stamps. The photos let me believe that the blade was treated partially with a rotating steel brush which destroys the surface. Very bad idea! Any and all amateur attemps of cleaning, grinding, sharpening, polishing, or restoring will lead to a loss of value - blade and TOSOGU! Natural patina on soft metal parts are important to preserve! So get rid of the rust on the NAKAGO with a pointed piece of horn, ivory, copper, or bone, brush it then with nothing harder than fine brass, and oil it lightly with machine oil of low viscosity. Basically keep the sword dry so no corrosion can take place. Read here at NMB about sword care and real NIHONTO.

Markus, a good story! You should definitely try to become a writer!

Ed, basically I like your TSUBA, especially the SUKASHI. In my eyes, the TEMBO-like dents detract from the beautiful (simple, but refined) design - looks as if someone shot at it with a TEPPO! Perhaps not typically MYOJU....

Andy, welcome to the NMB forums! Without being pedantic, it is a WAKIZASHI. You should do the right things (read here in the respective forums) to stop the active corrosion on the NAKAGO. On the photos, the HAMON looks like those of oil-quenched blades, I think. If I am correct, you probably don't want to invest much money for a traditional polish. Anyway, it is a decorative military item.

Chris, the HITSU-ANA is probably closed with lacquer. That is a traditional way to do.

rsen (please be so kind to sign all posts). the first thing to learn is the NIHONTO vocabulary so that you understand what is meant. It is an exciting subject once you have the bug, so be happy to dive into an interesting new world!

Grimes (is that your name?), to perhaps identify the maker of the blade you could have a small part of the blade (called 'window') polished to see at least HAMON and HADA. How thick is the blade near the MUNE MACHI? How big ist the difference with the thickest part of the NAKAGO? That may give you a rough idea of how often the blade may have been polished and how much metallic substance was lost. In the end $ 600.-- is a lot of money for a blade in this condition, and the mass-produced military mountings do not justify the expense.

Josh, at first glance this weapon does not remind me of a Japanese blade. From the photos I cannot see a KATANA shape or a clear SHINOGI. However, on some of the photos there might be a hint to a hardened edge. With a Rockwell testing device, you may have that tested. If this really once was a Japanese blade, I think it is ruined now. But as Christian wrote, this might as well be an historically interesting European weapon. Please compare with 'Bauernwehr' or 'Langes Messer' of the late Middle ages.

Francis, Nice! Looks like a SUKESADA KATANA blade in ITOMAKI no TACHI KOSHIRAE. Measurements? Your own estimation?

Ford, apart from my preference of round TSUBA, this is a marvelous piece! In some people's eyes it may lack grandiosity as the design is quite 'reduced to the max', but for me it is just that what attracts me. Chen, your beautiful MENUKI mice are very probably rats - no reason to call for the pest controller!

Stuart, Straightening a blade is difficult! Especially mono-steel blades (no traditional composite construction) need very careful handling and knowledge of their manufacture. Traditionally made blades are straightened with a special three-point vise-like device to prevent flexing and over-bending.

He is listed as selling from YOKOHAMA as well as from New York at the same time. That is called 'bilocation'. Marvelous!

David, I am sorry, try that one: http://www.sanmei.com/contents/en-us/p1531.html. It is the first blade on the site of SANMEI (Wakizashi signed Chiku-shu-ju Onizuka YOSHIKUNI). In general, you will probably receive no MEI confirmation here, as it is very difficult to base an opinion just on photos. As you can read here on NMB in so many requests of that type, the features of the blade have to confirm the smith and the time it was made, and the signature is a nice extra if it is correct (which very many are not). In this case YOSHIKUNI was a well respected smith of the early EDO period who was copied many times. So keep that in mind when you search in the internet for genuine YOSHIKUNI blades and OSHIGATA for comparison. Please be so kind to sign all your posts with a real first name plus an initial, as is requested here.

Chris, there are several SASANO books, but I don't remember having seen similar TSUBA in one of them. Maybe with some data (measurements) and informations (do you see TEKKOTSU?) we can try to find a school. By the way, nice TSUBA, I like them.

David (is that your name?), did you compare the signature with those of papered blades? There is one on http://www.sanmei.com/contents/media/T115819_W7590_PUP_E.htm

Brian, in most cases NAKAGO-ANA are not drifted open to size as this would cause the SEPPA-DAI to bulge. As far as I know, traditionally made openings of forged TSUBA were chiselled to size. Later in EDO times, a fine saw was used with a thin wire, oil, and diamond dust as abrasive.

If my memory still serves, I think I remember a thread on NIHONTO photography here on NMB by a professional. Brian will know.

Does not look like military.

Is that where you live?

Pluto, please be so kind to sign all posts with a real first name plus an initial, so we can address you politely. And please do not give your KO-WAKIZASHI to an amateur who will very probably ruin your blade with his polishing attempts! Have a professional have a close look at it. You have KUNITARO-SAN in Amsterdam who is a member here!

Very nice, Peter! I would like to see pictures of your other rooms!

Mike, the decision is up to you of course, but go slow with it! Have a renowned expert (Japanese trained polisher) have a close look on it first! A blade in this condition might have issues (HAGIRE, WARE, burnt in a fire etc.) that are very difficult to see! It could well come out as an interesting blade with nice O-GISSAKI, and if the workmanship confirms an authentic signature you may consider having it polished. The quality HABAKI and the decorated SAYA (not so much the TSUBA) may suggest someone cherished this WAKIZASHI - probably a wealthy merchant and not a SAMURAI. Think of the costs you will have to face (polish plus SHIRA SAYA, possibly new HABAKI, paperwork, freight charges, handling agent...) and of the market value after all that.

Sean, nothing supernatural - I have been studying the subject for almost 40 years now and I am still a beginner. You have to look at many good samples, compare, read books and articles, visit expositions and museums, go to club gatherings and - if possible - travel to places where you can expect to see high quality. It may be a long way, but it is fascinating and rewarding.