Bugyotsuji

Quote from above: "The Mei appears to be too good for this sword, so the possibility presents itself that a top Mei was inscribed as a sort of incentive for the boy, as good luck, or as a mark for him to aim for." No-one was able to guess the Mei on the Nakago. Everyone has given up then?

Harry, yes, that's right. Literally This (object above) has (a length of) Just to narrow it down a little further for you, has or have yu/ari 有or 有りis a generally useful Kanji to learn anyway. 之 kore (=this) is old and rare, but does crop up in old writing and on swords (normally in general Japanese nowadays written in Hiragana これ). So, one character for your general box, and one for the specialist box.

Guido, if you look at the sheet, the Shaku-bu lengths are written down the right side of the column, and 'ari kore' underneath refers to that, I believe. If the length had been written in meters and centimetres, it would have been written vertically to the left of the Japanese measurement, but Western measurements have not been given... no?

The small writing at the bottom is a service provided by the certificate maker, allowing for two measurement systems: the Japanese dimensions down the right, and centimetres/centimeters = senchi センチ on the left. PS Re Suwo. Place names often have aberrant readings. Thus Suwo is a very difficult reading for anyone not familiar with the place. No need to memorize this to help your Kanji study, unless you are collecting Japanese area names for Mei.

Well, if you look up when Kiyomitsu was active, and find an era with a minumum of three years in it, then you can maybe find a crossover. Tenbun ran from 1532 to 1555 and there was one Kiyomitsu at that time, so the possibility...

The most important part is the two lines on the right where they give the length, the date and the signature. Unfortunately the rectangular box indicates where the actual year is missing; the bottom of the date has also been cut off. What the line says literally is: Item. Katana. Mei. "...Year Three, Eighth Month... (cut off below)(Osafune Kiyomitsu)"

Hi Muki, that is just about my situation too. Good luck with your studies.

Peter, the first is for the Wakizashi, the second for your spear.

Mr Jones, yes to what you say, and yes to the picture. (Well, it's quite a long example, but yes.) Very good point. I believe that matchlock pistols were also made in one Middle Eastern country, (Iran?) but that throughout the world they were then and are today very rare. The reason is as you state. What makes our castle matchlock company unusual is that every member carries and fires a genuine old pistol. Varying lengths. We have to be careful to call them "Bajo-zutsu" as the J cops do not like the idea of the image conjured by the other word for the short version. Other troops are trying to equip themselves, but the genuine original article is almost as rare as hens' teeth. (I have seen cut-down long guns designed to look genuine Tanzutsu or Bajozutsu, and there are some modern repros, rumored to have been made in Kyushu, which are totally illegal. Some of those have even managed to get paperwork, but who could guarantee their safety under live firing? There is no 'body' or organization to check such things in Japan.) As to their use on horseback there are woodblock prints of riders firing them. The most famous usage was during the battle of Sekigahara when the Satsuma troops needed to break through the Tokugawa lines to escape the field. A body of horsemen set their matches to their pistols, charged, and broke through, eventually making it back to the south of Kyushu. Incidentally my own pistol was probably made around 1600-1615. Ah, sorry, to answer your question as to what their merit was. Well, as a foot-soldier the pistol gave you a second shot once you had discharged your main weapon, if you lacked time to reload. All you had to do was fire with both hands, or move your match to your right wrist and fire with the right. The pistol on horseback was much easier to hold and fire and load again than a long gun, and the match could be kept burning on the right arm. Certainly in the early days the element of surprise would be with you, as ashigaru had probably not foreseen horsemen shooting at them. One of the distinguishing features of Bajo-zutsu is the Ude-nuki-no-kan, a rectangular (sometimes oval) hole in the stock for passing a cord through and lashing the gun to your arm/holster etc. in case you should drop it from your horse.

Hello Anthony and welcome to the site. I visit here every day. It's great! PS Please tell me how you succeed with your wife!

Izumi (Iwaizumi) Daijo Nobusada.　（？） for the Wakizashi, but cannot see the Yari Mei. Nice looking set for the Yari. Not as old as some, I would guess from the shortness of the collar.

The quality of the fittings suggests that a Daimyo might have had this made for his son. The missing Kozuka may well have had silver arrowheads on it. There is a slight scratching along a section of one edge of the blade, (just above and to the left of the flash reflection) which may necessitate a polish of some kind. Whether it will then need a new Saya, would be a question. I have had the Seppa and Habaki re-goldplated. The Mei appears to be too good for this sword, so the possibility presents itself that a top Mei was inscribed as a sort of incentive for the boy, as good luck, or as a mark for him to aim for. Ian, are all Kozuka of differing widths? The slot seems to be very close to two Kozuka that I have, (1.4 and 1.5cm... the Kogatana will fit, but not the Kozuka) but slightly narrower, at about 1.1 or 1.2 cm. Actually (having an afterthought) it's not so much the dimension of the slot that limits the choice, but rather the size of the Hitsu-ana in the Tsuba. There is a good chance that yours might fit. Can you PM me a price? In other news I have sent the crumbly rusty three-barreled gun for tidying up and impregnation with something to stop the rust. I have also found a section of old oak Kashi pole (half of a Yari with Ishitsuki) which should be a good solution for recreating this polearm to look more like the illustrations in old Chinese texts..

Last couple of shots

Half a bottle of wine later and here are a few assorted shots. Difficult to realize how slim this whole thing is, so I have compared it to a couple of Tanto for reference.

Many thanks for the kind offer, Ian. I've only just seen your post, so later I will go home and measure the slot. It must be about three quarter sized. I tried some smaller ones this morning before heading to work (on a Sunday, grrrr...) but they were too small. (And the full-sized ones were just too big.) It may even fit a tanto that I have. Please hold that thought for a day or so! (Later. No it wouldn't have) Hmmm... looks like I will have to get the camera out again for Brian and force my turgid brain to work. Does anyone else find it hard to take simple, informative shots of Nihonto? Fun, but tough! The fuchi and kashira are decorated with silver arrowheads, and the menuki look like... dogs. (?) Watch this space, then?

Today I came across a rather unusual item and perhaps rashly decided I had to have it. The dealer called it a 元服刀　Genpuku-to. Later I showed it to some people who know better and I was told it is more properly called a 稚児差 Chigo-zashi (or Chigo-to). When a boy was young his hair was free to grow long, until the ceremony where he became an adult and started to wear a ちょん髷　Chon-mage hairstyle. What looks like a tanto or small sword is actually a young boy's starter sword. The blade is made in exactly the same way as an adult katana with yaki-ire, with a little Habaki, and the koshirae, although slim, is all beautifully fashioned in exquisite detail. Now all I have to do is try to find a narrow Kozuka which will happily fill the Hitsu slot.

Eric, a very good question and I am not sure I can reply in the detail that you require. One of our members likes to wear an ashigaru outfit, but most prefer to look like samurai. With a pistol holster strap round the neck, and a long gun, and a Tachi, and a Triton shell, we have more than enough clobber to carry and watch out for. Armies all had matchlock troops fighting for them; one section would be for wealthy privateer samurai who could afford their own armour and they would carry and shoot relatively large caliber Shi-zutsu or "Samurai guns". The ashigaru would be fitted out with the Lord's castle loan armour, or kashi-gusoku. Their loan guns would tend to be basic light army long guns. Some horse-mounted samurai would carry a Bajo-zutsu or cavalry pistol, longer than the smaller Tanzutsu short pistol carried by samurai in leadership positions. Those of us who can afford Tachi Koshirae are encouraged to wear one, as it hangs free of the armour and does not bang into it too much. Several of our members also wear a tanto slipped into their Obi sash, or just a tanto alone. The style of wearing Daisho, ie Katana and Wakizashi came later, in Edo, I believe, and the breastplate is very unforgiving if you try to wear them pushed down through the Do-shime Obi.

Congratulations on a nice find! Some Christian Daimyo went to the Philippines, including the very famous Takayama Ukon who should have been sainted. Good documentary the other night on J TV. Seeing those stirrups, I wonder if the shop is able to sell gear with crosses on more easily? (Such as Satsuma stuff, etc.)

The brass 'cup' is a Netsuke to hold everything suspended by strings from your Obi. It has a second and equal function as a tinder bowl. You'd put your bullrush fluff or lint in it, and strike your iron against a flint to start a fire in the bowl. With that you can light your 'match' for the matchlock. (The black flask/tube you are showing may be a Gamaho-ire tinder container, in which case that plug would be fine. Tell me, is it slightly off-round and does it lock itself tight when you twist it?) PS The red one is quite unusual. I wonder if it is not Korean or Mongolian? Ian? Anyone?

Just to illustrate for those who may not be following the discussion, or for Eric if you want to restore the last flask. Here are two shots of the larger coarse powder flasks and their typical construction. (Quite different from the smaller primer powder flask construction.) You will notice that the cap is attached to one side. (Both happen to have musket ball bags attached.) Eric, I have a couple missing their tops or other parts; there are many incomplete ones around. Long term projects, I have been gradually collecting bits at fairs to restore them. I have included my best Douran.

Yes, the Western ones tend to be metal with a spring-loaded scissor dispenser built into the funnel for measured amounts. The Japanese ones tend to be, 'a capful' for a particular gun.

Here are some of my flasks. The one bottom left is how it should look. The one on the right is closest to yours, but it's difficult to see that the top is two tubes, an inner one fixed in the mouth of and coming out from the flask, and a slightly larger outer one that acts as a measuring scoop and top, that slides tightly over the inner one. http://forums.netsuke.org/file?id=1040888 PS The triangular one center left (O-musubi shape) has a missing and poorly replaced top.

Just getting over sleepiness at the wrong time, the most obvious sign of jetlag. Been quietly working on new ideas as the inspiration bubbles up, in between regular work hours of course. One project that has suddenly taken me is to recreate the Sangan-ju, or Sanjian-bao more authentically. I bought a broom-handle some years ago and experimented with ways to sit the neck/sleeve firmly on the sharpened pole without using nails. The pole has been set in there ever since, but it looks brand new and out of place. The fixing method was good; just recently I have been searching for a genuine old spear pole of oak (Kashi) with or without a blade, or a Takeuchi-ryu staff for for example, from Bo-jutsu. I think I may have found a candidate. All I need is to catch the guy in and then negotiate a price. See the section of chopstick I bound into a cut into the pole point.

Thanks Ian. Yes, the first is a 'Douran' as you say. With a Kuyo-Mon. Very nice, but they tend to be quite expensive in Japan. The second is a drinking water flask, I have been reliably informed on previous occasions when these have appeared. ='Sui-tou' and yes as Eric says, a drinking straw. Nice condition. And the third yes, is either a priming powder or coarse powder flask, depending on its size. In that shape probably a coarse powder flask 'Kayaku-ire' for a small caliber gun. The whole top scoop attachment looks to have been lost and replaced with a plug to make it look a bit better.

Pic 6 on this page: http://www.cm-porto.pt/gen.pl?sid=cmp.sections/1025 You're right Ian. Looking at the descriptions it does seem that they take a fatherly interest in how firearms took root, developed and grew in Japan. Now they come back to Mother? :lol: PS Just read an interesting little book about the first journey of the Portuguese and how they ended up on Tanegashima. The story then takes the reader to Negoroji and round the country to meet Oda Nobunaga and see his fascination and tactics with the new weapon. In J, fiction, but enjoyable.