ROKUJURO

Darius, it looks like a long TSUKA for a WAKIZASHI! The TSUKA ITO is very probably leather; not uncommon at all.

Darius, your sword may not be 'very old' (how old is 'very old'?), but to me it looks like an EDO JIDAI blade, which comes down to a few hundred years at least. On the other hand, age has nothing to do with quality or desirability, so your blade might be a very nice one to look at and worth to care for. NAKAGO are usually filed so I don't think that the MEI was intentionally filed off. The problem with reading has more to do with your photos being not well focused. I think they might profit from a different angle of light. Try with artificial white light from the side or rub a small amount of talcum powder into the grooves of the MEI. Then wipe the NAKAGO clean with a soft tissu which may result in better readable KANJI. Hope that helps!

Thierry, thank you! OMURA's English is incredible, but I have the impression that he knows his stuff!

Please read http://ohmura-study.net/911.html for more information.

Sébastien, in my opinion this TSUBA is not in the typical KANEIE style, whatever signature it has.

Pictures? Not only from the NAKAGO but whole blade without HABAKI and details like KISSAKI, HADA, and HAMON as well! And please consider, we cannot replace a SHINSA panel just by looking at photos!

Yes. You can look for the smith in the internet, and maybe you find that SHINODA UJIFUSA was a SEKI swordsmith in WWII.

Looks very cosy, TSUBA can relax!

HABAKI can be hammered in place, when the NAKAGO is thicker than the blade. This prevents them from sitting too loose in their position. However, they can be removed with a piece of hardwood and a hammer.

First name is David? Did you give it a try yourself? The KANJI pages in the research department of NMB are a good help! I think the maker of the one-eyed SHOKI TSUBA might read TOSHIYASU.

The HABAKI does not seem to be the original one if it is one at all. I would like to suggest that you show the blade to an expert to learn proper handling and care. Do not put Japanese blades in a box and do not hang them on the wall unless they are wallhangers!

Gordon, are you really building a DAISHO or a DAISHO KOSHIRAE? Is this a DIY project or are you having it made by Japanese craftsmen? If this was the case, I think they would tend to use traditional material and decoration.

Josh, this one is probably a very recent (bad) copy.

Kurt, JIDAI means 'period' or 'age' (e.g. EDO JIDAI). The surface of your TSUBA looks a little coarse. You say it is carved, but do you see tools marks or traces of chisel work when you look closely at it?

ktanner, if you please sign with your first name we can address you politely. These swords were mainly machine made, at least that is my information. Restoring a TSUKA and replacing SEPPA and TSUBA is something you have to know about if you want to have an 'original' in the end and not a mere military wallhanger.

Enrico, my feeling is that there are no rules of how to start. Look at many good TSUBA (or pictures thereof) and ask yourself what you like about them. Looking at arts in general is not necessary related to knowledge, and you need not know schools and artists, materials, motives, and techniques to appreciate TSUBA. In the course of time you will find out what attracts you most and then you can start gathering knowledge and learning specific characteristics. Unless you plan to hold lectures about this subject, you can just enjoy looking at these little 'objets d'art'!

David, welcome to the NMB! The signature is easier to read vertically. It may be KANEKIYO, and the slanted YASURI ME may indeed be a hint to WWII production. To say more, we would need detailed and well focused photos of the blade. The NAKAGO is not 'well aged', but it is badly rusted so we can guess it was stored in a moist place. But please do not attempt to clean or polish it, you might damage it as happens so often! Please read the respective articles here on NMB about sword care, restoration and preservation.

Thank you, Paul! Good advice!

Steve, polishing is not just knowledge but mainly experience, and that takes time and commitment. There are indeed a lot of facts to learn but besides this you have to get a feeling of what is 'good' or beautiful in NIHON TO, as you wrote correctly. This was nicely illustrated in the SASAKI video. Teaching traditional crafts in Japan is mainly a possibility for the student to gain experience. He is guided by the SENSEI, but not taught in the way we Westerners are used to. That is the reason why even SASAKI-SENSEI confessed that he would probably never be as good as his teacher NAGAYAMA KOKAN. It is a lifetime learning process, and the results depend more on the personality of the polisher and how he was trained than on his knowledge I think.

Sorry, Peter, maybe I expressed myself a little clumsily. I was referring to physical data in comparison, and to some mental differences, very generalized. Westerners are used to working upright, and many (myself included) are having a hard time staying seated on the floor for a while, also in meditation. Genetically, Asian people don't have these problems. Is that better?

Besides what Denis said (plus being able to read and write Japanese as well), there are more physical and mental difficulties to overcome in an apprenticeship for Westerners. Japanese people (as well as other Asians) have a longer upper body and shorter legs in relation to Westerners, plus they are well trained to sit cross-legged. This makes it much easier for them to endure a polisher's working position. A Westerner may be able to hold this position for a while after some training (but not for many hours per day) but it soon becomes a pain in the ahhhh.....legs! Remember, it takes about 120 hours to polish a KATANA! Combined with this rather basic problem is that of mental endurance. Many Japanese people are able to accept the role of a disciple for a very long time; they are modest in their aspirations except for intense learning. They don't get easily bored by simple and repetitive mechanical work because they can hold good concentration and are highly committed. In general, learning by repetition is not considered boring in Asia. I don't think Westerners have genetically inferior conditions for a polisher's job, but I believe many Japanese may have an easier approach to it. And even if one can finish the long apprenticeship in the Japanese way, it is questionable if one wants to do it for the rest of his life.....

Bob, the TACHI you saw and those Lance provided are probably end of EDO JIDAI (19th century) as I read in the descriptions.

Bob, do you really mean blades with cloisonné or just the TOSOGU? It is not uncommon to see the latter with very nice cloisonné (SHIPPO) by HIRATA, e.g. http://images.google.de/imgres?imgurl=http://www.silk-road.us/hirata1.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.silk-road.us/hirata1.html&h=714&w=700&tbnid=ht_JbTzesRjDdM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=88&docid=g4_g-dn1-nRB9M&usg=__XyV3IPjFL67v7VjgAQqKdcHhZRg=&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiy-6mSteTLAhVFaQ8KHS0kA2YQ9QEIHjAA

Robert, this is an interesting one, and not the 'standard' design! Nice!

Josh, in case this blade is longer than 30.3 cm, it is a KO-WAKIZASHI in SHINOGI-ZUKURI form. Restoring such a blade requires knowledge; it is not so important to polish it until it is bright but to restore the shape and the lines in the first place. For that you have to know what you have! Don't try restoration at home, it will cause more damage than good. Keep it dry and oil it very lightly from time to time so that no oil gets into the SHIRA-SAYA. Don't clean the NAKAGO other than with a dry cloth.