Bugyotsuji

Not able to get everything, sadly, but 関住白口貞弘作, where 口 = a kanji I cannot read. Assuming that it is a place name in the Seki area that begins with 白... (?) Or 白鵜, a play on the sound of his name 四郎? Shi-ro-u Giving up for now.

Good question MalX!

Interesting find! Is the hachimanza on the tehen magnetic, or brass, copper. etc? The Kamon looks to be the Honda family crest.

The Horyu paperwork clearly says there is a last kanji in the date, but that they cannot read it, using an open mouth box to indicate this i.e. 徳治三+口 I have found in the past that experimentation with different lighting conditions can (faintly) bring up a character that shinsa teams do not have the time to properly investigate. Certainly with just one dark photograph of your nakago, we here do not have a chance, but you, with time and patience, might. .

Thank you Moriyama Sama for Nebiki-matsu, that is the word I was looking for! (Shown also in Dale's guard with the roots encased as Kadomatsu).

吉日 it’s formulaic but 吉 = lucky/auspicious + 日= day

Sotetsu were given to Okayama and planted at the temple to Ukita Hideie, so it could symbolize this gift from Hachijo-jima. Another possibility is the New Year's kadomatsu ceremony where a whole baby pine was used, with roots. Some pine branch outlines and needles look quite similar.

Try ‘sotetsu’ Damon, and the story of the Ukita being banished for centuries to Hachijojima Island.

Agreed, but why do dealers use such fuzzy photos?

https://travel.gaijinpot.com/bizen-osafune-sword-museum/ General background information

Ken katabami, Ukita. The large Ukita contingent (who lost as part of the western forces at the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600) would surely have lost credibility post battle and become homeless ronin.

The certificate is Chinese.

Ken-katabami, = Katabami flower with ken blades. 剣片喰

This was a seminal book Jan. Hoping the new one can come to fruition!

Trying to sleep as I must be up at 4:00. Can’t believe how many people have chosen today of all days to get in contact! The two on the left are in the museum in Tanegashima. The top one may be an original barrel, but it was in a fire and rebuilt in Meiji. The bottom one looks to be a sort of copy maybe from mid-Edo.

That is a very good question, Fabien. When (and where) did the Japanese fishtail butt start? There is a Chinese link to fish, and dragons. Here are some early gun photos. 伝来銃 Denrai Jū is the expression for the fabled beast, the actual two gun(s) which arrived on Tanegashima Island. Top right 暗黒期 = Dark Age Apologies to Sawada San, using for educational purposes.

Sadly no, Colin. It’s with Jan and he was still editing it last time I heard. It needs a kick-start. The world needs this book!!!

Lovely video! Yes, some of these are the ‘German’ forward-snapping matchlocks I had heard about. Great find! The lock mechanism is very similar but the stock and butt are more like guns of the English Civil War, quite different from Japanese matchlocks which also have cheek-piece butts, not for use against the shoulder, as you say. The bore measurements are interesting. The 15mm light guns correspond roughly to Japanese military matchlocks.

It’s as you say, Fabien, and some of us have spent years tracking down the answer to this. The quick answer must be yes, they were Portuguese snapping matchlocks with the sprung-and-released serpentine falling forwards, away from the shooter. All subsequent Japanese matchlocks, large and small, follow this remit, with a myriad of detail, geographical and gun school variations. Sawada Taira in Nihon no Furujū calls this age, from 1542-1600, (roughly the first 50 years), the Dark Age, because so little has survived, and even less is dated. There are a few photos of guns or parts of guns in his book that have been passed down with attached stories. The museum in Tanegashima has two guns in their large collection which they confidently call ‘original’ but this story must be taken with a pinch of salt. Ian Bottomley says there is at least one quite original gun in the Tokugawa Art Museum in Nagoya, which they do not show people. Something I discovered, or realized, as they were staring everyone in the face, is that early dated Goto Kinko work showing designs of guns and accessories, must actually be among the very first illustrations of imported (or careful copies of) Western guns, before the luxury of subsequent Japanese modifications. Find examples of forward snapping Portuguese matchlocks from Goa (and Africa) and you’ll be seeing roughly what reached Japan, before the Japanese sensibility started refining the concept. The oldest Japanese matchlock guns I have handled tend to be rather spartan, functional but heavy in relation to the bore. (This is all covered in the book Jan and I have written. Hoping it can more forward…)

Hi Deborah! Thank you for having the courage to post here. All activity is welcome. Your little Shishi or Foo dog is probably Chinese, judging by the material and carving style, so although Netsuke-like in size it’s better to think of it as a fun object, something cool in the hand on a hot summer’s day, or to hide in a bonsai pot or miniature garden.

Thanks for the kind thoughts, Dale. I really need to show Jan this thread!

Ah, thanks, Colin, the 21st might just be workable....

Probably nothing to do with this, or distantly related, but there was a folding-knife maker from Taisho before WW2 called Higo no Kami, and one of the smiths was 肥後守春重Higo no Kami Harushige. Originally registered in Meiji 32. The Emperor favored these knives. There is even a Higo no Kami Museum! Some clicky links here... https://www.bing.com/search?q=肥後守博物館&qs=n&form=QBRE&sp=-1&ghc=1&lq=0&pq=肥後守博物館&sc=1-6&sk=&cvid=EC6CAAD4226A40A8BC24728F7128EA84

Need to draw up a list of firm conditions first, lessons we learned from that last time around.

It's getting more and more difficult, to know where to be, and how to be able to live legally and permanently there, and yet still maintain your options to move back if things go pear-shaped, or if you change your mind. There are so many beautiful places on this earth, but if you put down roots, will you be able to ever move freely again? Try getting permanent residence once more in the UK for example, if you decide you want it, and try buying property there. All my adult life I have dreaded being backed into a corner, that moment where you are rendered out of options, i.e. check-mate. "The home is where the heart is", maybe, but will the authorities allow it? Edit, seeing Alex's reply. I'm like that too, like to take my time over purchases. I even encourage sellers to go ahead and sell what I am interested in, to try and save myself! If I come round again and it's gone, what a relief! If it's still there though, I'll probably buy it. (Brian from what I remember is more of an on-the-spot guy!)