Alex A

Yes, common.. Even by really good smiths such as the likes of Naokatsu etc etc Pay the price of an unsigned sword though..

Aye, its a mixed bag alright.

Appears you guys have never heard the Japanese Folk-lore regarding the Catfish that became a Seahorse that left the water and did battle against an ogre in a Maple tree with a bamboo staff. Whist being watched by the all seeing crazy legs Crane. Obviously joking. Need to know more about how NBTHK paper koshirae.

Maple leaves thrown in the mix too. I really have to believe there is more than meets the eye here with available info to those that papered it. Otherwise, where is the line going to get drawn with regards what gets passed.?

To me it is Colin. Like you said, "Personal opinion…..I’m really surprised this was papered as a daisho koshirae………really surprised. Me too, so Im thinking, how can they paper it as a Daisho?, unless they have evidence it was carried as a Daisho?. And not cobbled and paired together later.

Think there may be more to this than meets the eye, here. Who knows, some original, some added later, some provenance?. All we can do is speculate, unless someone knows NBTHK. and asks.

Axel, this is actually very interesting and raises a few questions as to how Daisho Koshirae actually get papered ? See its achieved Tokubetsu Hozen. As Michael mentioned, some matches, some obviously don't and plenty of quality to certain aspects. Now im asking myself if NBTHK have purely given the result on the quality of the koshirae or maybe they also think or know that the Daisho was put together back in the late Edo and not cobbled together back in 1950 or whatever ? Maybe it was recently sold as a family heirloom and there is evidence it had been in that form for quite some time. The Ito is a bit out of the ordinary with the twists and don't appear that old but maybe its just been kept in really good condition. The ray skin has age but difficult to know. A lot of the time on older koshirae you see it missing, worn ito etc. Really is hard to know for sure. Questions that need to be answered here, would be great to find out from those that actually papered it and how they got to their decision! In any case, a lot to like.

I wouldn't, might be some opening a lurking just ready to be discovered

One thing forgot to mention yesterday. For anyone with a papered signed sword by one of the well known Hizen smiths, compare the mei to online Papered examples that you find on sale/sold pages. Sometimes It can be enlightening seeing the subtle differences.. See so many over the years, far more than you will ever see in books. and also a lot clearer. Nihonto books of the kind above need a modern update in one way or another. Also, being honest, by todays standards the images of mei are bad.

See above Jacques.

Hi Adam, true. Though i mention due to Hizen school, just see it as a possible coincidence. Cheers. Ps, the one thing i notice most on yours compared to the examples put on by Mark and Jacques The lack of slant on the horizontal strokes. Though il be honest, stating its gimei is beyond me just by looking at a mei. I don't have NBTHK resources. As said, its not one of the obvious examples that you may come across. A short story. I once showed one of my Hizen blades to a well known expert and he remarked on the mei standing out as not being quite the norm. He was surprised to find out it was Papered by NBTHK. So i guess if folks with his kind of knowledge get the odd surprise, then that gives it some perspective.

The trouble with trying to identify blades by mei..................Its not like they are mass produced and punched on a machine. Looks close to me, not like one you normally see that looks like to be done by a blind man on a galloping horse. Always the possibility of Dai-mei. If it fails NBTHK, send it NTHK, you never know

Got a bit of time and will explain a bit more. Sometimes when you look at something it instantly reminds you have something you have seen in the past. Aoi art often describe Tadakuni blades as having an hamon that resembles clouds, which the blade above certainly does. The gunome is never consistent up and down along the blade. Just speculating and doing this off the top of my head. Didn't Tadakuni and the smith above both work at the same place around Kanbun ? So thinking a mixture of styles for one reason or another or a gimei on a Tadakuni blade. A mention of Masame in the Shinogi-ji https://sword-auction.com/en/product/9317/as17267-刀肥前住播磨大掾藤原忠国初代第25回重要刀剣/ Noticed more recently a few Tadayoshi blades online with a mention of Masame in the Shinogi-ji Another showing the hamon, you find Nie/nioi description for Tadakuni blades. https://nihontoantiques.com/project/hizen-katana-sword-fss-762/ Just thoughts, nothing factual, send it to Shinsa as mentioned to get the opinion of those with a lot more knowledge and data. Anyways, looks a real nice blade!

Hamon reminds me of Hizen Tadakuni.

Hi Piers, I'm thinking makers, schools Just trying to get my head around what folks go for and why. See many different types of Kabuto. Read of Saotome, where they considered the best ? Guess its a vast question as you point out and down to personal taste and budget but be interesting to see what folks like.

Knowing the most desirable is the most expensive, also what choices out there for folks on a more humble budget ?

Mine turned up today, as always a pleasure to deal with. Ps, for those that cant read Japanese and don't know Put the google translate app on your phone, use the camera and instant translation. Its not perfect but if you already have an idea with terminology then you will get the gist of it. Cheers Mariusz.

Cant remember ever seeing one for sale Grev, only in paintings and book photos

Aye, fantastic.

Ps, didnt know there were more pics of the blade, just noticed. Lots of masame hada, not what the Tadayoshi school was known for. From memory, read of it in the shinogi-ji sometimes.

To answer my own question and for anyone also curious, p247 Inlaid in gold or silver red lacquer or gold lacquer..............rather rare he states for cutting test results. Don't see brass.

Had a concern whether the inlay was actually gold. A lot of the time you see its been picked out. Judging from the images i cant tell whether its actually gold, gold colour or even brass?. Its something that I've never really thought about. Has anyone ever seen a brass inlay on a nakago?, curious. Ps, Dimitri, good book https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tameshigiri-History-Development-Japanese-Testing/dp/1312327030 Cant remember but maybe the answer to my question is in there, will take a look.

Was just thinking of the possibility a later generation but you have to take into account the date on the cutting test write-up. Not saying there are no winners when it comes to auctions but im not the optimistic type and don't have money to gamble Maybe an expert that has it in hand may be more confident,. Could never bid on what's available and without taking a real deep trip through the books. not for me.

Expensive, see Katana by well known smiths 10k upwards https://www.aoijapan.com/katana-bizen-suke-fujiwara-munetsugunbthk-tokubetsu-hozon-token/ Sometimes you see wakizashi for half that. Also, on rare occasion you come across a good private deal. Always a compromise though, the sword is mediocre or it was tested by a lesser known sword tester etc etc. Most folks just say buy the sword, not the inscription. Depends what you like.

Cheers Grev. He really does do his research and sits on the fence with stuff he is not sure about. Not just limited to edged weapons, he has also done some very informative vids on some firearms and their use in battles. The last bunch he talks about, i didn't know they were mainly used for law enforcement. Think i saw something similar at the Royal Armouries, from memory.