Johnny Barracuda

Hello, it is my turn to concur. Although the makers oddly chose a rather unusual and rare shape for the blade (perhaps in reference to gensui to as they wanted to pass it for a WWII sword), it seems a China made fake to me.

Oh dear, oh dear...

John, it seems that the guard and backstrap were re-plated, since they appear in a far better shape of plating than the scabbard. As for early kyu gunto, before the Meiji 8 authorisation in 1875, i.e. the Type 8 swords, most swords were imported. Actually, a lot of the Type 8 series were also imported, frequently from Germany and often made by Clemen & Jung, a weapon factory from Solingen that still operates to this day. From the Meiji 19 (1886) authorisation, all swords were made in Japan. Type 8 and Type 19 swords for generals are similar, and a Murata-to would date from the beginning of the 1890's. Ohmura-san has an interesting page on the kind of sword you own: http://ohmura-study.net/911.html Hope this helps.

Hello, any pictures? That would be helpful.

A traditionally made blade is like a femme fatale: very deadly but so beautiful it is easily forgiven. An arsenal blade is also very deadly but not beautiful enough to pretend to be a work of art instead of a weapon.

The lock is flying to Denmark!

Thank you! Nice solidarity between fellow Navy kyu gunto fans! I removed the lock from the Army kyu gunto. Can you send me your address by PM?

That is awfully nice of both of you!

Thanks for your answer. The problem is "if you have the tools". Since metalworking is not my favourite DIY field, I do not have the tools.

I have a type 19 Armu company officer kyu gunto whose release catch spring is broken. It has the button and the upper bar, but the spring bar is missing, so the sword does not lock in the scabbard. Does anyone know how to repair this part or procure an intact one?

One of my relatives owns some from the 19th century. Those were among the first tourist traps and were sold to naive gaijin during the Meiji Era. However, most of these have both a very crappy blade and a degree of talent in the carving that depends on the original price. I have seen quite a few of these, because they were very popular in France at the end of the 19th century. Most of the time, the blades are crappy steel bars ground into shape and rather often rusty. However, the carvings can be exquisite and I have even seen one made from actual ivory. With those specimen, I would say possibly modern replicas of the Meiji tourist traps. The blades are actually better looking than on period pieces but the bone parts are awful and the mother of pearl parts scream "fake Chinese crap", but it is hard to tell with such small pictures.

Following this previously posted link http://cb1100f.b10.coreserver.jp/collection3a.html presenting a huge collection of Japanese military swords in Japan, i.e. with broken blades for non-traditional swords, one will notice that many of the swords with intact and therefore traditionally-made State certified blades, bear arsenal stamps.

I concur. Fake and artificially aged.

I would consider it as an upper-end arsenal blade. Not mass-produced, but I do not think it was completely traditionally made. However, I am quite certain that it was not chrome or nickel-plated. The hamon looks a lot like the one on one of my kyu gunto, which was acid-etched. Those swords were for high ranking civil servants, so a real combat blade like on a Navy kyu gunto (either machine or traditionally made) would not be expected. Anyway, it is a very rare sword in great shape and therefore a rather interesting piece for a militaria collection.

Hello, I noticed this rare sword on eBay. It was issued to high ranking Chosen (Korea) colonial administration officials, bearing the administrative title of sonnin kan, that is the civilian equivalent to Army superior officiers (major to colonel rank). http://www.ebay.com/itm/Nice-WWII-Japanese-KyuGunto-Hand-Forged-Army-Officers-Dress-Parade-Sword-/301575485134 It is an interesting sword for the Imperial Japan militaria collector. Like all colonial swords, it looks like a Navy 1883 type dress sword, with the main difference being the side insigns on the backstrap. It bears the 5-7-5 kiri emblem, which was used (among other functions) as a symbol of the Chosen (Korea) colony after the annexation of Korea by Japan. An interesting feature of this kind of sword is the similiarity between the floral motif on the guard and the one on the 1890 type sword for IJA Navy. It is also interesting because it is held together by a menuki, whic is rare for this kind of sword. Therefore, it can be taken apart. The seller is pretending that the blade was hand-forged, which I sincerely doubt since the hamon looks acid-etched. Anyway, it is a very good piece and the seller obviously does not know what he is selling. Cheers. Thibault

As for the material, I noticed in Japan that it is relatively common to recycle old obi (kimono belts) this way. Old obi are very cheap on Japanese flea markets and make very nice sword bags. Cheers Thibault

Great! I am an avid ukiyo-e collector.

Thank you for this erudite and very interesting article.

I think that is the one. I visited the Yasukuni Yushukan last summer and I think I recognise the sword. Interesting place, the Yushukan, with a very peculiar view of History... but very interesting anyway.

Thank you Xavier and sorry for the late answer. I would of course add you on FB if I had an account!

I second this opinion! I would say the most elegant military sword in the world, but the matter is covered, since Navy swords are generally more beautiful than army or cavalry swords. Here is mine, along with my Army kyu gunto. Both have tassels now and I should take better pictures with a rising sun flag like you did. The Navy kyu gunto has a good quality arsenal blade bearing the Naohiro stamp and made during the Taisho era. The blade is in good shape and slightly oxydised, as seen on the pictures, mounted through a sterling silver habaki. The mounting is absolutely impeccable and retains most of its golden plating. It bears a mon (I do not know which family it belongs to, see picture). One single wire was a bit loose on the handle but I fixed it. The rayskin same on the handle is top notch (big scales near the pommel) and the sharkskin same on the scabbard is faultless. The Army kyu gunto is less elaborate. It is two-handed, and retains two suspension rings. The blade is arsenal made, stampless and bears what is probably an acid-etched hamon (see picture). What is interesting with this sword is that it was produced during the Meiji era and it was actually used during the Russo-Japanese war. The blade bears battle scars. Also, it bears a silver mon from the Hachisuka family, former daimyio of the Tokushima Domain in the Awa Province, whose head was at the time Marquis (kōshaku), President of the House of Peers, and former ambassador to France (important place to be sent to! ). So, although it is a company level sword with a standard blade, it belonged to a junior officer from a high-ranking noble family prominent both during the Edo and Meiji eras. Cheers.

Hello, I share some of Hamish's motivation. I collect both kinds of swords. One must remember that a nihonto is a weapon, before anything else. It is a splendidly made weapon, but a weapon nonetheless. It is not a work of art, as a statue or a painting is. It was not made to decorate a room, but to kill people. The point is that it was very well and very elegantly made. Therefore, I appreciate the nihonto as a fantastic piece of craftsmanship with artistic qualities. As for my motivation for collecting imperial military swords, it comes from the fact that I am a great admirer of Meiji Japan. This extraordinary period saw a small medieval country become a main modern country in less than 40 years. Japanese people took everything from Western powers and made it their own, instead of becoming a colony like their neighbouring countries. To me, the combat version of the kyu gunto perfectly embodies this period: while Western-looking, it is completely Japanese. It is both elegant (as western military swords of the time were) and deadly (as only Japanese swords can be). That is why I am collecting kyu gunto. Price wise, I have seen many koto blades cheaper than Navy combat kyu guntos in good shape, even those with arsenal blades. Demand and rarity make the price. Some people have realised that some gunto can be really nice. So prices went up. Cheers.

Thank you Hamish.

Thanks for the information. Being less knowledgeable than some of the expert board members, I have a very basic criterion: if the sword is sold from China, I assume it is a fake.

Hello Hamish, I already have a two-handed army company grade kyu gunto with two suspension rings. What I am looking for is the cavalry officer type 19 gunto, which has a specific handle (see attached picture, more visible than the previous one I posted (please click to zoom): Like the regular army kyu gunto, it can be either one or two-handed and the backstrap flourish is similar. The main differences are with the pommel and knuckle bow.