Peter Bleed

I think the dude's name is HIDETOSHI, but I'm not sure about the rest of what he wanted us to know. P

R.P. You have and present an interesting sword that appears to reflect - at least - some recent history of sword assessment and kantei. On the surface it appears certainly to be a well made, highly regarded blade with formal attribution to a serious early Shinto smith. Nidai Kunikane was the son of the Shodai master and he made very good blades. I'll dig out some specific later, but for now all we need to know is that he learned, mastered, and presented the techniques his father resurrected of the Yamato tradition, good masame, no turnback on the kissaki, and nice full niku . But, those techniques were subsequently past on the the following 12 generations so the picture gets complex. And somebody(???) put his name on lots of those swords. Thus, getting paper for his signed swords is tough... trust me ! Add to all of that, this sword carries an old "green paper" that also has a complex history. Bottom line, this probably is a VERY good sword that deserves appreciation. I'd like to see the saya-gaki, too, please. Peter

This seems to have been an interesting discussion. It was politely presented and edited so I am not sure I have fully understood and followed the discussion. I am also not sure I understand it all. Still, in collecting Japanese things - swords and guns included, the safest strategy is if avoid anything that is "unusual." But I have to add in the case of matchlocks, if something looks/seems "Japanese" but is "unusual", I have to ask what else would it be?

This sword has generated a lot of reactions, opinions, and assertions. Let me add to the mix. IMHO, this blade is NOT AINU. I will also assert that it IS(!) Japanese but NOT really a "Japanese sword". These things - have the overall, gross design of Japanese blades, but they regularly involved various wood, antler, and complexly woven fiber fittings. The do NOT have Ainu style carved embellishments. They are also NEVER shown in Japanese studies of Ainu ethnographic materials. I have never found a published treatment of these blades, - and I have Looked ! I feeling is that they are blades made by and for folks like the MATAGI and other folks who occupied forests and other wild country of the Edo and mebbe Meiji era. Japan. They supplied wild meat and other resources but operated largely outside polite and official society. Look it up - - - MATAGI. Peter

Doing nothing more that scanning the images in the old Sendai-han Mei kan, your nakago seems unlike the ones shown. Obviously that makes in suspicious to me. It certainly is interesting and deserves research. Peter

Friends,I beg some advice and help. I bought this screen yesterday, but I have never owed one before or explored this category. This screen has - supposedly - been on a wall since before WWII. Peter

Gee, this turns out to be really interesting. If there is a way to make a WWII era Seki blade "interesting" this blade sure has it! Peter

Mike, Let me suggest that you might find it useful to go back to some of the OLD sword literature. Take a look at the books by John Yumoto and B. W. Robinson. These were written when the audience was very naive, so they offer basic information. To be sure you will ahbe learn some kanji, but I STILL! find value in Robinson's kanji chart. It is a very useful way to learn stroke counting and BASIC kanji. Once you have the names, you can go to lists - like those presented in Hawley, to address the whole mei. You will have a lot of fun!

Would that mean it maybe a gimei? Or mebbe a neat little package... P

This has been a useful discussion. I am much informed! Thank you all. P

The Token Message Board has, once again, proven to be a wonderful resource. Thank you Piers and Jon for your guidance – and the 50 odd folks who paid the discussion some attention and offered opinions. I am not sure that I adequately explained the topic of my interest, but as a result of the discussion, I am enriched. A part of my interest is in Japanese style guns modified during the late Edo and Meiji era was what those modifications do to the value of the altered guns. Dick Dodge (who was an active early re-imported of matchlocks to Japan) opined to me and others, that the primary determinant of matchlock values in Japan was the Tokyo police. His argument was that guns they judged legal could be imported to enter the Japanese market as antiques. Guns that they judged ”modern” could not be imported, and were therefore excluded from the Japanese market. Modified arms already in Japan could be registered. All this to say that I raised this question because I was kind of wondering about the value of these modified shooting irons. The information Jon shared on Murata shotguns interestingly shows that in Meiji times Japan had a hunting gun industry and folks who hunted game either commercially or for sport. By the 1880s there seem to have been folks who could get ahold of Murata bolt actions and insert in old and new guns. It would be interesting to know where this was done and why they sometimes used old guns. Tanegashima modified to use percussion caps seem to me to offer a potentially more interesting riddle. To my eye, these look like they might predate Meiji times so that they might reflect the dynamics of the terminal Edo period. As Piers notes, Sawada presents a great range of firearms that were imported into Japan throughout the later Edo period. Clearly, the Japanese were well aware of world firearms development. (For us sword collectors, it is also worth remembering that the Shin-shinto era was basically about re-arming and modernizing weaponry.) But, in Sawada’s 60 odd pages devoted to late Edo period guns, I see very few matchlocks modified to use percussion caps (page 175). Another (page 185) is shown right next to a tanegashima that was modified to use a Murata bolt action. The collectability of such arms, however, remains uncertain. Peter

Please allow me to beg the advice and insights of this community on modified tanegashima. Clearly, unmodified and original matchlock guns are the central interest to collectors, but I am curious about guns that seem to have been altered – maybe “modernized” – with non-traditional ignition systems. Caplock systems seem to be rather common, but I also have a gun that carries a Murata bolt action. Such “modernized” guns seem not to be treated in Japanese literature, even in volumes that treat 19th century imported arms. Are modernized matchlocks legal and interesting in Japan? Do they have a following internationally? Are there studies that address how and when these modifications were made? Peter

Well done, Steven! Nice job! Peter

Can anyone make out the Mei? I sure can't.. without a better picture. It looks like it cold be an interesting blade, but you'll need to show us a better pic. Peter Bleed - Little Rock, AR