SteveM

Or 長光 (Nagamitsu)

Rakutō (East Kyōto). So Kyōto is the right location 城州愛宕郡洛東住 (Jōshū Otagi-gun, Rakutō-jū) but I can't find the smith. I also suppose its Yasutaka 保高, but Wakayama is a bit inconclusive on it. He lists two smiths using those kanji, but doesn't mention location for either, or typical mei styles. He just notes that both are late Edo.

開眼子 (literally, "child with opened eyes") is the "art name" of the artist, Kanezui. The use of "child" in the art name, and the image of the child on the tsuba, is coincidental. The theme of Hotei with a child (particularly, a child in Chinese dress from the Tang dynasty) is an often-used motif. You can find other examples if you search for Hotei with Tang-dynasty Child (布袋唐子). I don't know the meaning or the origin (well, I guess the origin is Tang China).

The perfectionist in me demands I repeat the correction from the other thread. Please forgive: The theme as described on the paperwork is 雨龍 (amaryū, or rain dragon), not 雲龍 (unryū, dragon in clouds).

The characters look like "常之", but I could find no extant signatures of Yabu Tsuneyuki in my books, or online, to tell if this signature is a match. I did find an exquisite set of menuki from the Wakayama Prefectural Museum, that is from Yabu Tsuneyuki. (link below). Unfortunately there is no shot of the mei. The catalogue says it is signed "Yabu Tsuneyuki" (藪常之). chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://wave.pref.wakayama.lg.jp/news/file/33039_2.pdf

Looks like fake Japanese writing. Possible to get a look at the sword?

200 years ago this shorthand script would have been much more familiar to people. The shorthand script (grass script, kuzushi-ji, etc.) would have been a part of an educated person's upbringing. And, the poems and literature that is often referenced on these items would have been more familiar to (again) educated people. I think the modernization of Japan and standardization of hiragana pushed this kind of calligraphic script out of the mainstream.

Small correction: 雨龍図鐔 (tsuba with image of "rain dragon")

Yes, it should be a haiku. About 一花; the most obvious reading (to me) is Ikka, but it could also be read as ichige, or other readings. I doubt it is the author's name, but the way it is offset from the rest of the text does make me wonder. I'll wrestle with this a bit more. The leaf, the gourd, and the poem should all tie together.

一花 (ikka) on the left side, but the right side is a bit too cryptic. A mix of kanji and hiragana and hentaigana that is tough to crack (for me). Ikka means "one flower", but that doesn't help me figure out the rest. The image looks like a leaf and a gourd. Again, it may be a clue as to the poem/text, but it is beyond me.

肥前作 御鍔 Hizen Tsuba

I can see all of the pictures now. The "Seki" stamp on the top of the tang also identifies this as a WW2 blade.

The theme of the menuki is referred to as takarazukushi (宝尽くし) lit. abundance of treasures, filled with treasures. It is a theme that is also found on kimono fabrics, and features the lucky items shown on Dale's post above.

Hello Johnny, Your sword has the name of Fukuda Sukemitsu (福田祐光) on it. Fukuda Sukemitsu was a war-era swordsmith, so your sword is from the mid 1900s. I couldn't see all of the pictures..I got an error message halfway through. (Could be an issue with my browser?). Anyway, if you search on the internet for that name, pluse some other keywords (swordsmith, gunto, etc.) you should be able to find more info.

Hello Luca According to the site below it should be "sukisage-bori" (aka "sukidashi-bori"). A technique for making the main image stand out from the background, by cutting away at the surrounding surface until the main image is raised (i.e. appears more three-dimensional). https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/14655/#:~:text=「鋤下げ彫り」（すき,に表現する方法です。

I guess the official name of the policy through which the government solicited swords from the public was Guntō Hōkoku (軍刀報国), and this name appears in both the appreciation certificate, and in the leaflet that Bruce posted a picture of on June 28, 2020 (at the top of the thread).

As advertised, its an official letter of appreciation (from Japan's Military Officer's Hall), given in thanks for the donation of a sword. It doesn't mention the sword maker/type, etc... Year is 1942.

Was hoping to get a shot of the actual inscription. Presumably it means "in commemoration of", but I can find no other reference to this kind of inscription, and don't know how you would pronounce it. Maybe (in kanbun style) kore de (date) wo omotte. (With this, we commemorate/remember the date). But... I suggest this with low confidence.

OK - Thank you! That makes it simpler; the cut was performed in Amagasaki in Settsu province, on Dec 18th, Shō-ō 1 (1652), by Mozume Kyūbei.

The cut was made at Amagasaki (a city in present-day Hyōgo prefecture) in February (presumably 1652), and the sword was inscribed with the cutting test results on December 18th, of the same year. The cutter was Mozume Kyūbei.

I'm sure that's a monogram (kaō) and so it would be unique to the author. It's hard to tell what kanji the author stylized it from. Usually the kaō is made from a part, or parts, of the family name, but could be some variation of 正 (true, correct) or 眞 (also true, truth, sincere).

One could be the date of the test, and the other the date the inscription was added. Unsure. (my reading of 梅津 could be incorrect as well, or the reading could be correct, but the interpretation of "August" "February" could be incorrect"). 梅津 is a poetic name for August February, but... it is a bit rare. Edit: Oops, correction, 梅津 is a poetic name for February. I'll leave the spoiler as is (with the error untouched) Edit #2: Had to fix a typo in a name. I should also add that the name of the cutter is not included in Guido Schiller's list of known cutters. Unknown, or known at the time, but just rare to see on swords.... who knows. I should keep track of these "unknown" cutters (who have very confident signatures) and create an appendix to Guido's list.

Shō'ō = Jō'ō (with or without diacritical marks...both are the same, and I think both are acceptable pronunciations).

I think 承應元年壬辰十二月拾八日梅津於尼崎 三つ胴切落物集女九兵衛（花押）

And to add to John's correct post above, the flag is presented to a Mr. INOKUCHI Asaharu (井口朝春). This is the name to the right of the "good luck in battle" phrase mentioned above. INOKUCHI is the surname (family name) of the person to whom the flag was presented. There are other possible readings in addition to INOKUCHI (for example, it may also be read as IGUCHI). The flag was presented by the "Young Men's Association of the 13th Precinct". It would take a bit more research to pinpoint the exact location of that precinct. Most of the rest of the writing would be the names of the signers. Looks legitimate to me.