Markus

Adding to Brian's comment: ... and if you are seriously considering buying something for $15k, can't be wrong to have someone translate the native Japanese description for let's say 50 bucks, *cough, cough*

Unworthy? No comment was made about the blade itself, which doesn't look bad at all.

Thought it is a two character signature... Having now the whole context, I tend to think it is only one character and somebody clumsily put a Sa (Samonji) gimei onto a mumei blade. Edit: Its the same character though, 左, which is read SA by itself and SUKE in combination with another one (focusing on the readings of swordsmith's names).

Side by side with handwritten SUKE (左).

Suke (左). http://clioapi.hi.u-tokyo.ac.jp/ships/ZClient/W34/z_list.php?title=%E5%B7%A6&resourcetype=0

General info: These "updates" are a reason why I am not going to turn my Kantei series into any monetary venture (as many suggested I better do). In other words, the Kantei series reflects my most recent research and will always be free because it is so to speak backed by the support I have received from readers like Guido who actually buy my books.

Guido, it is insofar different as I realized that a mere master-student-relationship-based genealogy can be kind of skewed sometimes so I tried to focus more on family ties. When going along with my Kantei series, I tried to go once more through all the references and update accordingly, so this might be a reason for differences as well. What I had not incorporated before in my genealogies book but do so with the series is Tsuneishi's Nihontō no Kantei to Kanshō. Actually quite an excellent book which I didn't realize reading it the first time many years ago but it has very good info.

Hi Bob, Check out my Rai genealogy here: https://markussesko.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/genealogyrai.pdf Lilke Guido said, Tsuruta's staff got confused. Kuniyasu did not branch off from Nakajima Rai but a level above so to speak, after Kunisue.

I was going through my references again but could not find any Nobukuni mei executed like that. What era roughy does the shape and workmanship suggest Ray?

@Curran: Someone should have taught me calculating... Kosa was born in 1573 not in 1578. Well, he would still have been only 18 years old when Rikyu died. Makes the issue a little "better" but still pretty young...

There is indeed the term sunnobi-sugata but it is not very clearly defined. That is, the term sunnobi-sugata refers to a blade shape that reminds in its overall proportions to a sunnobi-tantō, regardless of its actual nagasa. I might have to point out that subtlety in one of my next Kantei Series chapters. Thanks for bringing it up Jean.

I think it is the smith that I have listed as follows: MITSUSADA (光定), Keiō (慶応, 1865-1868), Owari – “Owari no Kuni-jū Mishina Ichidōsai Fujiwara Mitsusada” (尾張国住三品一道斎藤原光定) There was a Mishina group active at that time in neighboring Ise province. Quite possible that he was related to them because they too used go with the ...sai (...斎) ending.

As Uwe mentioned, the item in the Samurai Art Museum Berlin is not intended to be used. It is a ceremonial axe with sword tip which is referred to as ken'iri-masakari (剣入鉞). This interpretation is a little bit different from a fusô (斧槍) which is a yari with a long tang that has an axe element around it. In other words, the ken'iri-masakari is basically an axe with a normal sword-style nakago ken added on top. Such ritual axes have a quite obvious symbolic meaning, namely "cutting through the sins". As also Buddhist ritual swords have basically that meaning, you have here a good "combo," i.e. cutting off and cutting through the sins." FYI: The axe part is indeed made of steel but it is not sharpened. It has engravings of a dragon in clouds and the sword has a Fudô-Myôô on waterfall horimono. The piece is super heavy BTW

Great read! The full English version of the website should be online in a few days by the way.

Wow, this is a beautiful koshirae and package!

You are right Guido. It is indeed a variant of the 隠 character and can be found in this database: http://jigen.net/kanji/167686 Doing a quick check on Japanese pages for a reading of 小隠 , most seem to quote the name "Shô'in".

Interesting history: The sword was tested by Shôdôken Togasaki (尚道軒戸賀崎), i.e. by Togasaki Kumatarô Yoshitake (戸賀崎熊太郎芳武, 1839-1907), who was a swordsman from the Shindô Munen Ryû. His great-grandfather Togasaki KumatarôTeruyoshi had studied with the school founder Fukui and is briefly mentioned at the very top of the Wikipedia page of the ryû: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shind%C5%8D_Munen-ry%C5%AB

Excellent! Subscribed.

Whilst I still try to figure out the mei, I just wanted to throw in that I saw the sword at Bob's place and it is just amazing! Very high quality workmanship and after checking it out hands on, I can understand why it must be a great cutter!

Thank you very much Klaus for your continous support!

Just wanna post one pic that Bob Elder from the Orlando Show took. Its my friend Bobby Block and me after our lecture and it just looks like as we were about to start a fight with the audience over there. Subtitle: "What, WTF you just said?"

Great show! Thank you Mark for the perfect oranizartion!! Happy to see you guys again (in alphapetical order ): Alfred, Allan, Arnold, Bary, Bill, Bobby, Bob, the other Bob, the other other Bob, Brian T, Chris, Chuck, Cyrus, Daniel, Danny, Derek, Eric, Fred, Joe (hey, saw you and your cute daughter just twice briefly), Jim, John, Jurgis/George, Mike V, Mike Y, Moses (Moseis ), Nick, Pat, Paul, RKG, Rob, Robert, Ron, Taylor, Ted. If I forgot anyone, it is not because I'm rude but because I'm going to bed right now

Does anyone have AITO (愛刀) magazine #391, 12-2010? Would love to check a blade featured therein for research purposes. Thank you for your attention.

Maybe koroai (頃合)?

Very sad news indeed. Thierry had always been highly supportive of my work and backed every single joint project we did here on the NMB. To give you an example of his kindness, Thierry just donated to the Gendaito Project on Thursday the 15th, the day before he presumably died, as Jean meantioned in his initial post. That makes me very sad and the very least I can do to pay tribute to Thierry's enthusiasm is to dedicate the finished Gendaito book to him. Rest in peace.