Peter Bleed

Thank you Brian, but... I tried to get some pictures of the hada of this sword, but I just couldn't get anything worth posting. Thanks for your interest. Peter

Let me second what George said! Amazing work, Markus!. I will correct a typo, too. I meant "high contrast steel. It truly looks like" this blade has a couple of layers of stainless steel. I wish that Kaneyoshi would have become "an important" smith. And Markus has helped me see that his use of "KokajI" was less a modest comments on Kaneyoshi's assessment of abilities than an arrogant linkage that was way out of place given the skills he demonstrated in this kizu rich blade! Thank you again, Markus. Still, I have to think that this sword is an "interesting" reflection of experimentation and exploration that was going on in the world of Japanese swords in the "Pre-War years." This sword shows that techniques and skills were being developed in sword making communities. I find it also interesting that this sword seems never to have been a gunto. It did not achieved "art" status. Maybe it was "research", but it seems never to have been called into service. Peter

Friends, Please allow me to present for a discussion a sword that seems like it ought to be interesting, but that is also, well, challenging. As shown in the attached images. The sword is signed: Mino Yoro ju Kokaji Kaneyoshi saku. And it is dated mid fall 1937 (Showa 12, Chuaki). The blade is in shirasaya with an individual’s name on the end of the shirasaya tsuka. The blade presents strident ayasugi hada made with what looks like high contract steel. The 1937 date seems rather unusual. All that seems pretty interesting, but (!) the blade (which is probably in its original polish) has several kizu and even small fukure. I have also never been able to really figure out who KANEYOSHI was. There is scant record of a smith by that name (KAN469), and he seems to have been proud to be from Mino, although he used that non-Mino “kane”. And what’s a “kokaji”? I suppose it could have been the dude’s surname, but since it literally means “small/minor smith” it could mean that he was modestly claiming only to be an amateur or an apprentice working with another “real” swordsmith. The signature seems skillfully cut and does not look like it was made by somebody who merely spent a weekend visiting a smith at the famous onsens of Yoro. A sword like thing might be an interesting document about the formative years of gendai sword history. But does interesting history overcome the kizu? Please share your insights, correct my errors, and tell me about this sword. Thank you Peter

Steve has presented an interesting and even expert assessment of this nakago. I see the odd features he has pointed agree and I can only agree that it is"funky" and not likely to be "important" in any way. Still,... I think it might be "interesting". This looks like a very late Edo period sword and lots of exploration and experimentation was going on at that time. I could believe that this sword was made in Edo by a person who was guided and well-connected and then went on to other things. I don't see this as a studied "fake." Peter

1959, july 18 (i think) Showa 34, shichi-gatsu, ju hachi nichi

That was fun. Ray nailed it and I should have gotten the Yamato John got. But, like I said, that was fun! P

crappy picture, but look for something like Tashiro, something no kami.Minamoto Kane kuni saku Peter

This question made me think. Thanks. I had always thought of these two variables as essentially different, but maybe the world is more complex than that. I thought that hitasura was essentially part of the yakiba and a result of the clay applied by the smith. Ji nie by contrast is the result of control during heat treatment. I am quite sure that ample nioi up in the blade would not be a good thing. But maybe I need to look at more of each of these. Good question. Peter

It is a Bizen nakago that has had a bit of grinding on the jiri. Peter

This looks like a koto Bizen nakago and there are a bunch of Bizen Kiyomitsu, aren't there? Peter

I wasn't expecting a question without expecting an answer when I posed this - and also without expecting to say anything, but... Aoi Arts-sama is a wonderful gentleman who presents us all with treat everyday. And anybody who goes to the NBTHK Museum without dropping by his shop is missing a trick ( HINT If you go THERE you get to touch the stuff!). Whatever is the relations twixt yari and ken, description of this item as a "Yari" is not a translation error. In kanji it is described as a "yari". The world is a complex place! Peter

http://www.aoijapan.com/yari-mumei-4

Eric, thanks for the reaction. It looks like you are right - there is not much interest In Japanese guns of this vintage. That may not be surprising since there is very little available information on them. I have to say that is also too bad. Clearly Japan was rearming and modernizing in the 1860s and 70s. Unfortunately it looks like most of the work was being done in isolated, small operations that there "below the radar." In fact, I be they were illegal and left few traces. It was also a very brief period since the meiji government soon took over, got their army going and blocked development of regional armies. . This remains a tempting gun! Peter

Axel, Sorry if I was unclear. I THINK the the date of the toroku - that is the "registration" - was in the early 1950s, So the sword was almost 100 years old when it was submitted for registration. There was recent a discussion on the NMB about when registration started. It would be worth checking that thread. The date on your registration card looks like it was a very early registration. And it was registered up in Aomori. The date on the card is - I THINK - the date of the registration. It is on the farleft. The date of the sword is presented in the column that is thrird from the left for descriptive purposed to identify this sword. I see the "YUKI" now. Hisayuki was an interesting smith. I has a spear by him and - years ago - a tanto. As I recall, both of those also showed his age. This seems like an interesting sword. Peter

Trying to get ahead of the real experts on the list is a dangerous activity, but this registrationlooks very interesting - EVEN if I can't read it! It says it dates from the 12th month of the opening year of Manroku so that is - ahhh - 1860, right. The mei is a challenge for me could it be Kawai Hisatoshi or HisaSOMETHING? who was 75 when he made it. AND, the Torokusho itself is dated very early, too. Is it Showa 26? Overall this is very interesting. Please show us the sword! Peter

Chris and John, Thank you for your insights and forgive me for "urging you into discussion" - even if it is proving to be a discussion that exposes my ignorance. The tsuba we are discussing is clearly very good and certainly collectible. My willingness to ask if it might have been created in China is based on a couple of features. The main factor is the hitsu - which to my naive eye - looks like it was added to what had been a complete surface. Beyond that the odd seppa-dai does not strike me as like those of clearly Japanese namban tsuba. Was the nakago-ana slightly squared or rectangular? Not as much as some, but it was substantially reworked suggesting that it was adjusted for Japanese use. I don't know enough about Hizen guards to express an opinion about this, but I will say that to my eye this embellishment and technique look exotic. I really wish the Chinese sword collectors would get their act together and publish some books that would show use how Chinese sword guard developed! In any case, I will say again that this is a very interesting fitting Peter

Chris, Your tsuba 1 is very interesting. A fellow could be tempted! By saying "Namban or maybe Hizen" are you saying that you think may have been made in China? I think that would only enhance its desirability BTW. And if it is of Chinese manufacture, do you think it was made FOR the Japanese market? Or was it a Chinese sword guard that was repurposed in Japan. I sure wish there was an accessible literature on Ching Dynasty sword fittings. Thanks for posting. Peter

Brian, I am not sure what will bring "advanced collectors" back, but I sincerely hope that you will post all and every story you have heard about ME. If you make that post, I will add all the images (properly edited, tsk, tsk). I must also say that the contretemps of sword collecting seem to be a part of the topic. Nothing I've seen on NMB compares with serious parts of Sword Society politics. Relax, friends, this is what we do and call a "hobby." It was that got me writing my novel. Mebbe it is time for another. Peter

A couple of interesting Japanese firearms just showed up on the world’s flea market. I’ve decided that I don’t need them but I hope some on the NMB might find them worth discussion. http://www.ebay.com/itm/221877352398?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT I have not found anything just like this in Frances Allan’s Banzai volume on Imported Arms of the Meiji Era, but it sure looks like a Japanese production wrapped around an imported lock and breech block. The stock seems to be made of oak and both of the sights look like they belong on hinawaju. The “plus” screws in the butt plate are – ahhh – challenging. And I am surprised that there are not a lot of marks and stamps on this gun. But it seems like an interesting arm. This dealer also is offering an old looking hinawaju as well. Is the Japanese market as soft as this suggests? Peter

Jason, and Friends, This has been a terrific example of how the NMB can and should work. It began with a sincere and well-framed question that was supported by easily accessed graphics. The discussion was expert and specific and real real fast. I think it was also a fair use Tsuruta-san's webpage.I also have to agree with Ray that the mune-machi is - ahhh - interesting. This one covers the NMB with glory! Peter

Jason Please do not assume that I am anti new collectors. I have answered lots of questions, translated lots of signatures, published introductory pieces in places like that JSSUS-NL. I have also taught classes aimed at engaging a new generation in sword collecting. https://www.facebook.com/ToNoKai?fref=ts In any case, the point of my last post was to discuss the role of categorical responses and simple answers. It seems to me that what you should do is find a way to use the NMB to expand your learning. If you are reading stuff you certainly have discovered inconsistencies. Questions about terminology would be great topic for you to bring to the NMB for discussion - maybe even clarification. Now is the time you should be active and involved. The Board should also help you find people who share your interest. Meeting real people and looking at real swords is the best way to develop your interest. Peter

I am not sorry for asking about the state of the NMB even if it communicated an implied – an unintended – criticism of some regular contributors to Board discussion. For that, I’m sorry. A part of the problem – explained by Curran – is that I get on the NMB by punching the “New Content” button. That means I get to see all the naïve demands for information and gratification. I’ll try to be more selective. Beyond that, however, I think the NMB has come to express a modern approach to sword collecting. Let me call it the “Google” approach. The people who contact the NMB for “translations” or “information” are expecting an “answer”. They may want assurances that they have not wasted their money or that their grandpa was a hero. But they also assume that somebody has the answer to their question. Some folks love answering question (I do), and so our visitors get answers. But there are two (2) problems with that approach. It doesn’t encourage people to develop their own skills. (Yes, yes, we have seen the attempts to get “newbies” to figure things out – but does that ever work?) More seriously, it encourages the belief that sword collecting is a bunch of revealed answers as opposed to a series of discovered questions. As Japanese sword collecting has become a mature field, it has moved in the google direction. Whereas we used to have to figure things out, now we can “know” everything. (Would we be safe in assuming that any blade in Japan without papers is gimei or saiha?). With all of the information, collectors can simply depend on expert opinion and established answers. The challenge for the NMB is trading information that is sound but not limiting. Peter

The NMB used to be the place to go to discuss serious issues about Japanese swords. You could come here everyday and find expert insights from really advanced students of this thing we do and call sword appreciation.Where are the gentlemen who used to show up here, sharing deep understanding as well as charm and wit. Now, by contrast, we have become the go to place for naive questions from people who are too lazy to go to a library and too cheap to buy a book, but fully willing to demand attention. They can even be argumentative if they don't like the free expertise they are getting. Can NMB be saved? Peter

Looks like a hachi or a kyu to me. And either would work, right? Peter

Making any suggestion in this kind of situation is likely to generate strongly negative responses from somebody, but... I have found that plane old Nevr Dull does a really nice job of cleaning up old lacquer. It is non abrasive, but from my experience it cleans lacquered surfaces, romove gunk, and add luster. Peter