Katsujinken

Absolutely fake, likely Chinese. 

You could’ve done a lot worse. It’s a bit short at 64 cm, but this was typical for the time. 

45 minutes ago, Winchester said:

If someone was planning to set aside around $10K, what would be the best bang for the buck, so-to-speak?

 

Would you go "all in" on a very nice katana or prescribe to the thought of more is better? Thanks in advance.

Quality over quantity, always. 
 

Quality offers more to study and learn from and will hold its value better, meaning you can trade up with greater ease. 

Ask away! We are here to help. 
 

The search function is your friend. 
 

First tip: spend your first chunk of change on some books. 
 

Welcome!

51 minutes ago, ChrisW said:

I am mostly referring to things like the unsigned wakizashi, etc. And a lot of the prices in this auction are still obscene displays of waste.

I feel like this is usually the case with big auctions. More informed buyers know better. There are exceptions for exceptional pieces of course, but they are by definition extremely rare. 

In my case I’m referring to the father. Since the sword that started this thread has a Hozon paper I assume it’s by him as well. 
 

But I’m thrilled to discover this video, thank you for sharing it!

Love it. $75. 

I strongly recommend you check out the for sale section here before buying. Samurai Museum Shop is fine, but usually overpriced in my opinion. 
 

As Jason said shipping from

Japan is straightforward, but it can take time due to the export process. If the sword is worth more than $2500 or so you will likely owe some duty upon import (to the USA, anyway), and you’ll want to make sure all the declarations and paperwork are in order so as to avoid running afoul of Fish and Wildlife. 

8 hours ago, Yasaka Azuma said:

Michael's kanekuni is such a masterpiece(It's Hamon's craftiness that's outstanding!) that other kanekuni are no longer as good.
Since kanekuni is a work that can easily be found in the market, you should carefully select a product that is as well-made as possible.

Thanks Yas! The funny thing is that I got a very good deal on this blade (in my opinion). I suspect because it does not have his famous doranba hamon, and it was 20+ years prior to him becoming mukansa. I do love it though!

Kanekuni was a wonderfully talented smith. I own a blade he made in 1984 with a similar signature: 濃州武藝八幡住兼國作之

Glad you had such a good experience! Note those are NTHK papers, not NBTHK. 

My overriding question, solely out of curiosity, in this context is: is the shinsa committee aware of a previous attribution when they are considering a sword? As in, when the sword in Jussi’s post passed TokuJu, did the committee know they were changing the Juyo attribution as they were making their determination? Or is the process totally blind?

Thanks Paul!

Jidai for me in this case comes from where the sori happens and the fact that it’s described as o-suriage. Not everything in Nanbokucho had a 3.5mm sakihaba after all. 

The nakago photo is out of focus, but it seems like some yasurime are just barely still visible. So I think late Kamakura is out. 

But I am probably just revealing the extreme limitations of my kantei abilities here! 

Leaning Yamashiro / Rai. Nanbokucho. 

7 hours ago, Bob M. said:

Have never seen oni trying to hide under an umbrella/parasol before - really nice workmanship.

Indeed, the kashira is the standout price from the set in my opinion. It’s a lot of fun. Thanks Bob!

I have a “Joi” f/k set mounted on a wakizashi. Emphasis on the quote marks! Mine are also definitely gimei, I think. :-)

Good grade of rubbing alcohol = the highest concentration you can get. I buy 99% whenever possible (remember anything that’s not alcohol in there is water). 

You pretty much paid retail, in my opinion. You didn’t get ripped off, but there are better deals to be had (usually here) if you are patient.

Mumei and shinto with no papers is very much a commodity package. If you do ever want to sell it you’ll need to be very patient to make your money back.  
 

As others have said, you can do a lot worse for a first blade. 
 

The first one is definitely a small ware. The others look like old rust pits. 
 

Grab yourself a copy of ‘The Connoisseur’s Book of Japanese Swords’. That’s pretty much the first book anyone should buy. 
 

Enjoy your sword!

That bit refers to the chrysanthemum crest (kiku mon). 

Well, it’s a blade. And it has a signature. The rest? ...

This is Katana Boutique on eBay, which means if it doesn’t have papers already it never will. “Daimyo registered” means less than nothing without provenance and/or papers. 
 

Would need much better pictures to speak to the blade itself, but honestly in this case they’re not necessary. 
 

Nothing evil going on here, just caveat emptor.  

Incredible. What a treat to read such a thorough report. 

The NBTHK paper just states the length along with the attribution and date. Everything else is boilerplate about the sword being judged as tokubetsu kicho, etc. 

Now that you know the attribution (Nio) you can start to learn about the school’s work and time period(s). Based on the sugata, you’re looking at shinto in my humble opinion. I’m not sure why the NBTHK didn’t go so far as to say Sue Nio in that case, but others with more expertise may chime in.