DirkO

Here's a link that might be usefull, but as said, it depends on the blade .... http://www.nihontocraft.com/Nihonto_Shinsa_Standards.html

Basically what happened was the following : I saw some Mishina blades on dealer sites and with one blade the description didn't seem to match the mei. So I started comparing meis, and in the whole oshigata comparing frenzy, I forgot an important thing : People a lot smarter than me will have noticed this years ago :D Ah well at least I know that that dealersite is definitely wrong in it's description

So I reinvented the hot water :-) Ah well, it was fun doing it and a good way to learn any way.

Hi, I've read a bit about Mishina-den and the way most people distinguish mei between the two factions Kyo Tanba and Osaka Tanba is by the presence of the kikumon. Osaka Tanba doesn't have a kikumon and Kyo Tanba often has the kikumon. But when going over some oshigata in various books, I came across something else, and when checking this I found it to be a rule that works well : Kyo Tanba and Osaka Tanba both have their own way of chiselling "kami" : First Kyo Tanba (with kikumon) : the particular stroke seems to go from low to high Then Osaka Tanba : the same stroke seems to go from high to low (also in other various examples, sorry if the pics aren't that great) Am I correct in stating this or am I finally going mad ?

Is this weird variation on "why did the chicken cross the road ?" ?

.. just don't get him started on the airvelocity of swallows or whether they migrate :D @ Nolan : If you come across a site or an offer that's too good to be true, it almost always is. Also, the search function on this forum is very usefull to see if other people didn't come across the same thing before.

Maybe time to refresh everyone's memory or for the uninformed .... : http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=5406&p=41974&hilit=armor8#p41974 http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=5104&p=39541&hilit=armor8#p39541 http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=3262&p=24033&hilit=armor8#p24033

Some nicer tsuba and fittings + some starter blades + books http://www.klefisch.com./

Jean, you beat me because of my need for a coffee

Well for most collectors a hagire is a definite nono. But if you buy a blade with hagire just because you want to study the activity in the good parts of the blade, then it could be a cheap way to have some hands on experience at home. You'll have to keep in mind that it's not the best addition to a collection.

I remember seeing that nice sukesada naginata before.... too bad I don't have that kind of money lying around http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx?from=salesummary&intObjectID=5253787&sid=cff9b101-ce34-4eb5-83c4-6aa22ef6a78f http://www.nihonto.com/3.5.04.html

Grey, The auction description on that site says : Genuine Wakizashi (short Samurai sword) by Yamashiro circa 1650 A.D. w/ Non-commissioned officer’s metal scabbard Maybe that's a starting point right there :-) http://engstromauctions.com/HouserOct3/flyerforweb.htm

Congrats Brian ! Hope the following year will bring you nothing but good things in your life !!! - PS : Isn't it time to start rallying for the yearly raffle again ? :D -

Guess my more esotheric approach loses out to the more practical one :D

I think the theme is the buddhist wheel of life : http://backpack4life.net/photos/thailand/images/654/640x480.aspx

Yes that was what I thought as well. Registration began with the higher ranked people, so on average this should be better quality than the swords held be the masses. Or at least that's how I remember it.

Yes Andi, It's indeed a sort of registration paper (Torokushu). You can read all about it in this article by Guido Schiller (together with his evil twin quite the dynamic duo here on the forum) :lol: http://www.nihontomessageboard.com/articles/sword_law.pdf Yours seems to be one of the earlier registration, seeing the form and the early number on it. (< 5000 is called daimyo registration if I'm not mistaken ? Can anyone elaborate on that ? Or correct me ? - probably the latter )

Don't forget the one that's partially filled again and I even think the bottom one was redrilled at one point, so that makes 6

Already being discussed here : http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=5647&start=15

Same here ! Got the mail, not responding.

Is this new NBSK meant to replace the NBTHK in the long run ? Or simply to provide structure for certain areas which got less attention in the past ? Is NBSK supported by the Agency for Cultural Affairs ? Does anyone have more info ?

OMG I would give anything for a meet and greet with Mark :-) But yes, apparently there's big scary world out there full of people who don't collect nihonto or even care about them !

Brian, I think you got the Stephen Spielberg bit from the Nat Geo documentary, if I recall correctly. I also think there's a book out there about nihonto in the collections of famous people, but I'm not sure if this is just about FN (Famous Nihon-jin) or more of a worldwide thing :-) PS Clive : I'm more of a Mark Knopfler-fan :D

Now here's something else : http://cgi.ebay.com/Japanese-Sword-Tsuba-and-Menuki-Moulds-For-Casting_W0QQitemZ250465961806QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item3a50ef474e&_trksid=p3911.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A12%7C66%3A2%7C39%3A1%7C72%3A1205%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50 First time I come across something like that on the bay.

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