Bugyotsuji

It appears to say 備州長.... or 備前長..... but for some reason the rest of it is missing. Why? What it tells you is that it was made in Osafune, which is in Bizen/Bishu (same area), one of the five great traditional swordmaking regions of Japan. What has happened to half of Osafune, and the name of the smith which would normally follow?

Can you take a couple of shots of those last two Kanji, P, under different lighting angles and conditions, please?

Yes, these have come up many times on this NMB site. Check out ‘Soten’ (Sōten) school tsuba.

Which other markings? Grey and Uwe covered everything we see above. The date and the name are chiseled into either side of the tang. Seki no Ju Kanenori Saku means: “Kanenori who lives in Seki made this”… Now you can start the track and chase!

Hmmm… I wouldn’t be too sure. Some folks like to focus and go for one thing first, and maybe socialize afterwards. Horses for courses, no?

That’s all we can do, Ian. Just keep learning, all of us! You did just fine above. (My comments were free additions for anyone reading this thread. Thank you for supplying the template and diving board!!! ) PS We have many weird conventions (contractions) in English too. Why do we call ‘two weeks’ ‘a fortnight’ for example?

Rob, can you get a clearer shot or two of the concave diamond cartouche contents?

The age Joko should be Jokyo 'Gwan-nen' and 'gwatsu' are old Victorian Romanizations of Japanese. Gan-nen 元年 and gatsu 月 are normal today. Also 四日 is made of yon/shi (4) and hi/nichi/ka (day), but when they are read together yon+nichi are conventionally pronounced 'yok-ka'.

Arthur, the Mei on the Nakago of your wakizashi says 則光 (Norimitsu)

You're most welcome. Are you enjoying your 'new' Wakizashi blade?

Yes, 18 June, Reiwa 5. (Two years ago)

平土入とは二ツ胴を一刀両断してさらに土壇を通り越してその下の大地まで達したということである This means that after the blade stroke cut cleanly through two bodies, it continued through the soil base and into the ground below. I found this explanation after a bit of a search, Uwe. It was on Yahoo auctions, so I cannot guarantee its authenticity.

It might say 'Kunimune Saku' Edward, but I can't see it at that one angle. 國宗作? Can you take two or three shots of those three kanji characters under slightly different lights and shadows?

Oh, and the 長さ length is given as「一尺三寸二分余有之」 "this has: one shaku, three sun and just over two bu" Isshaku, sanzun, nibu amari, ari kore

The side of the NTHK Kanteisho paper with the information in grid lines and the 4 red seals.

I was holding a yamagane/odo tsuba the other day and asked casually if these would have been cast. A few eyes flicked around the room, as if looking for higher confirmation, and then after a some pregnant seconds, 'yes' came the answer. A room full of artisans, too.

Yes indeed, and according to this you are correct. 脇差　備中国呰部住河野理兵衛尉為家 (WA-040221)｜刀・日本刀の販売なら日本刀専門店の【銀座 誠友堂】

Your wakizashi paperwork is from the NTHK, the Nihon Token Hozon Kai, quite a well-known certification body, if not quite as trusted as the NBTHK. I have a crick in my neck recently making this a pain, but... The first line from the right notes the smith Mei as signed. The next line descrbes the 'tsukurikomi' as Shobu-zukuri, iori mune and ubu nakago. Then kitae: O-itame Then hamon: Choji midare Then for the boshi: Midare komi, maruku kaeru Then 1 mekugi ana, and nakago filed in sujikai. Period: Around Kanei (Not sure what 別家 means, possibly 'a different branch' Tameie, not the main family?) PS Written in a rush. Forgive any oversights!

There's more descriptive stuff if you want it...

It's certainly unglazed, earthy and nutty. I have grown to like it over the years; earthy colours and textures seem to be common to Bizen sword tangs, Bizen long guns with iron and silver lockwork, and Bizen pottery. Three-in-one. It is said that fresh flowers last longer in a Bizen-yaki vase, as the pottery 'breathes'. Incidentally, I once saw an example of a Bizen-yaki Netsuke, but where and when.... The Silverman Collection in the Toledo Museum of Art in the USA has probably the world's largest collection of ceramic netsuke. Once dropped, that's it, thus not too many ceramic examples have survived down through the centuries. I only have about six or seven (?) myself.

Moriyama San, thank you very much! This has been bothering me all morning. No wonder there was no such address in Japan!

That is astonishingly cheap, Colin! (But not ‘congratulations!’ though…?) Strangely enough, I saw a large Bizen-yaki Kirin yesterday. Now, you will see Shishi of all shapes and sizes, even pairs of fighting shishi, but I cannot recall ever having seen a Kirin in Bizen pottery before. (Talking of Bizen, they have just knocked down the 'old' Bizen Yaki Kaikan in Inbe and completely rebuilt it as the Bizen City Museum, opening on 12 July, very soon.) https://www.axismag.jp/posts/2025/06/660481.html

Srinivas, try cropping your photos before uploading. (80% of each is unwanted background.)

The tag is smudged, making it hard to read. Name places have changed and fallen out of use so everything needs double-checking. I’m guessing several people are attacking it right now, though!

Run a swordsmith search on: Bungo Ju Fujiwara Teruyuki (Fujiwara Teruyuki living in Bungo in Kyūshū) 豊後住藤原輝行 (Oops, I’ve just now noticed Jussi’s reply!) 柴田福蔵 Shibata Fukuzō The name on the tag