Okiiimo

Steve & John - Thanks for that additional information and suggestions! I removed the phlotograph from the archival storage and to rescan it at a higher resolution hoping to find more clues from what appears to be a address sign in the right side of the doorway. I noticed the back has writing that's mostly covered by adhesive and black album paper (photo of back attached). I'm hoping that the adhesive is rice paste and I'm planning on soaking it in distilled water and maybe I can get the writing to show up for an additional clue. John, I'll follow your lead on look more into that clinic reference. Ideally, these clues would lead to a location. Stephen - thank you for your sense of humor... as bad (in a good way) as it may be Regards, Allan

Thank you Steve and John! What a strange possibility for a translation. I've been using various translators with the characters that Steve identified and got some interesting results too. (I don't think the sign has anything to do with cows!) For my education, are the horizontally arranged characters in the sign read from left to right and then the order is transposed to use in western text and search engines? Regards, Allan

I’m hoping for assistance in translating a building sign that is depicted in a photograph of my grandfather and his fellow officers serving in the Imperial Japanese Army. The photograph would have been taken in Manchuria sometime in 1938. I have learned that he served in the 7th Division “Kuma Division” which served in Manchuria in the late 30’s and then was sent back to Hokkaido about 1940 for home defense. I recently learned after close scrutiny of some other photographs that he was a mounted cavalry officer. Attached is a modified copy of the whole photo and an enhanced blow up of the building sign. I do hope everyone understands that I electronically defaced the photograph to limit circulation since this photograph is a family heirloom. My apologies in advance for the quality of the photograph. The original is only about 5 x 8 cm. I was able to find that the fourth character (furthest right) is “胞”. Please delete this post if inappropriate for this forum. I do understand that I’m requesting a translation from Chinese but I’m hoping that someone here might be able to lead me in the right direction with either the correct electronic kanji (so I can continue research using the correct character) or if someone has a suggestion for another venue where I might contact individuals with expertise in Japanese military campaigns in Manchuria in the late 30’s. Thank you in advance! Allan

Here's the link to the source. https://www.ucpress.edu/ebook.php?isbn=9780520959941 Title: Kendo Author: Alexander C. Bennett Publisher: University of California Press Big provided a link but it doesn't allow you to back out to the website front end. Only Chapter 1 is available as a sample.

THE DUDE!

+1 to what Steven says. It’s basically a notebook that someone decided to publish. Indexing and cross referencing of Oshigata is nonexistent. Some pages are copies of handwritten notes.

I found the article to be a bit wandering. It starts off with Musashi and ends with an indictment of a historian that applied western anti-gun sentiment to Musashi. I highly recommend “Musashi” by Yoshikawa. Kodansha publishes an English translation that is a compelling read.

I just got mine today and I'm really looking forward to reading it!

Thanks for sharing Ray! that before and after photo of the Yasusada is very eye opening.

I don’t think it’s possible to progress in the study of Nihonto without using the Japanese terminology. Further, I think true expertise in the subject requires fluency in the language.

This thread is giving me the wants for one even though it’s outside my collecting focus!

Ken - Thank you for pointing out my failed attempt at humor!

I found a Hirotaka blade in gunto about two years ago and wrestled with whether it was genuine. I submitted it for NTHK shinsa early last year and it papered. I've found there's a lot of variability in his mei. NTHK kanteisho and a reference study of examples are attached for your review...

The aoijapan Tachi example is priced at ~$270 per cm of nagasa. Therefore, the tanto in the OP is worth about $6-7k assuming it’s around 25cm or so. Maybe add a 10-20% premium for the horimono.

Melt value represents the minimum cost a reasonable person would ask for.

The melt value of a solid gold habaki would be roughly $500 assuming high purity and a weight about 1/3 oz at a spot price of about $1280 per oz. Best of luck in your search!

I wish honor and humility were prerequisites for nihonto ownership - some show it but when others lack it, it shows up in a thread like this as an open sore. The divergence of personal interpretation of the meaning of "art sword" is so broad and so personal that the meaning of the term seems to be diluted to insignificance.

I feel a sense of loss of a very familiar website that's been around for a long time. The website looks nice and contemporary and bringing the articles forward is a real bonus but I miss the sword categorization of the old site.

I believe it's effectively a marketing term necessary to justify preserving an aspect of cultural heritage to the western powers who had little understanding of the cultural meaning and history of nihonto as a result of the loss of WWII. I posit that by adding the label "art" to an object allows it to transcend it's original purpose to become an object worthy of preservation and study on the basis of cultural history, craftsmanship and form.

Ken - with respect, I wasn't suggesting that forging removes radioactivity or changes the rate of decay. I was suggesting that the forging process may alter the C12 to C14 ratio of the original organic material. Once the ratio is altered, it may not be possible to apply the data to the C14 decay curve to come up with a meaningful date.

The nuances of carbon dating are beyond my expertise, so I ask this question in ignorance. Wouldn't the forging process "reset" or destroy the C12 - C14 ratio - making it impossible to determine the date?

I can see how the OP can rile feathers of those that have personally experienced reselling at a loss. There are many variables that affect this "hobby" that are beyond the control of an individual collector - world economy and its effect on disposable income is one of them. New collectors will spend money however they want to and who am I to say whether their choices are right or wrong. If a new collector approaches an experienced collector for advice, the advice given will be based on the personal experience of the collector. Unless a person is one of the rare few that have never sold at a loss or is a profitable dealer, I think its safe to say that most on NMB have experienced monetary losses - especially if collecting goals/tastes change faster than it takes for the item to appreciate beyond the original cost. In today's economy, average swords purchased just a few years ago would likely sell today at a loss. Gary - your post states several observations - some pointed at collectors in general and some pointed at new collectors. What are your suggestions for fixing the issue you've identified? Without a suggested remedy, the posts are nothing more than rants to which there is little discussion and certainly no consensus. Surely this thread wasn't started to invite the flames of passion from others to be directed at you right?

It looks like someone recycled a broken blade.

Beginner - "I don't know anything about (insert subject) but I really want to learn!" Intermediate - "I know a lot now!" Advanced - "There's so much I don't know and I'll never learn it all in my lifetime."

I've been following this thread with great interest. I thank the contributors for sharing their insight! Perhaps I'm out on a limb with this thought but I see this discussion skirts around a direct discussion of nihonto collecting ethics. If one truly subscribes that the old NBTHK papers are indeed worthless and worse, is a cause for the perpetuation of deception, it would seem that an ethical collector would be compelled to destroy the papers once in possession. I've never come across a post where someone announces that they've destroyed on old NBTHK papers but it would seem that if this is truly the position of the preponderance of the members here, it should be common place AND it should be supported, if not applauded by others. Are there valid reasons for retaining obsolete NBTHK papers? (other than to sucker the next guy)