Ray Singer

Yes, the kissaki has clearly been reduced. This is not how the kissaki was originally structured, however it is also not a very significant problem in terms of the importance of a sword. You can see a similar feature in the tokuju Enju Kunitoki from the Compton collection.

I have a photo of one sword from my archives of Darcy's website

Hi everyone, sharing another post for the kanji flashcards. I have received an additional order in, and the cards are in three study categories: Mei (names) - the more commonly seen kanji used in swordsmith's mei, including examples of mei containing that the featured kanji - 152 cards Kuni (provinces) - the reading of the Japanese province names, with information about the provinces and some reference information on related schools and representative smiths - 90 cards Nengo (time periods) - the kanji for time periods from the late Heian period to the present, with reference information on each time period - 144 cards My hope with these is that everyone who uses the cards can have a better understanding of the fundamentals of reading Japanese sword inscriptions and kanteisho, and this will unlock access to Japanese language references for the study of Japanese swords. These cards are now available for $25 each plus shipping. Please email me at raymondsinger@gmail.com if you would like to order a set. And if you learned about the cards through this post and place an order, I will donate 5% of each sale back to the NMB. Best regards, Ray

https://web.archive....kimitsu-2/index.html

https://web.archive....yukimitsu/index.html

Inscription: Mei: Minamoto Masao Date: Bunkyu ni nen san gatsu hi (a day in the third month of 1862) https://sword-auctio...kubetsu-hozon-token/

Hagire would not seem to be related, a hagire can happen at any time (for example, damage from impact at a later point in time). I would not make a connection between the two separate situations: The blade was shortened and documented by the smith who did the work At some point, the blade sustained damage resulting in a hagire

Throwing in a set of late Edo menuki and dropping the price to $725 (+ shipping & PP). Just something that I am assisting with as a favor.

A Ko-Bizen Tomonari has been added to the gallery of art prints. Here are photos of all prints now available. Please message with any questions and I will provide further details on these.

There is an excellently priced Chiyozuru katana for sale within the group right now for even less than the budget you stated.

To clarify, this is on a kogai (not a blade).

When a sword has been shortened and there is a komei inscription ( indicating what the previous inscription was), the stated attribution is not taken at face value. It's only upheld by the shinsa team if the characteristics of the sword itself align with that attribution. For example, a nakago inscription of komei Norishige Tadatsuna suriageru would not receive NBTHK papers if the blade looked like a Nagayama Ikkansai Yoshihiro rather than a Norishige.

Unfortunately also a Chinese fake.

Please see below. http://www.jssus.org...japanese_swords.html

Osuriage mumei katana, 66.5cm nagasa with copper habaki and saya only. Gunome hamon in nie-deki with a thick habuchi. Deep sori, extended kissaki and raised shinogi. Futatsuji-hi on one side and the reverse with bo-hi and soe-hi. $700 + shipping & PP

A boy's day sword, shinshinto with wisteria theme sukashi tsuba and hawk & monkey kozuka. Kashira and menuki are missing. Wide gunome-midare hamon. This style of blade was produced often by the Mishina line of smiths. $850 (plus shipping and PayPal)

Something that may be informative on the subject is Tamio Tsuchiko's book The New Generation of Japanese Swordsmiths. In particular there's a chapter on Ohno Yoshimitsu, and the focus is on a shift in thinking and considerations he goes through in order to support sword orders for marital arts usage, which is not the same as his typical orders to forge swords for collector appreciation. This is one of the best living Japanese swordsmiths, who produces swords either for appreciation or for practical use.

At a guess perhaps 吉氏 (Yoshiuji) or 吉武 (Yoshitake).

Bruce, the error was mine. See below https://www.google.com/search?q="義包"+site%3Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.militaria.co.za&client=ms-android-google&sca_esv=f7a9fdc91166be13&sxsrf=ADLYWIL1_nT5KPuTzVEDBGmWcczQaQBq5A%3A1716556804678&ei=BJRQZr-FKfn9wbkPxu28gAQ&oq="義包"+site%3Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.militaria.co.za&gs_lp=EhNtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1zZXJwIiki576p5YyFIiBzaXRlOmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lm1pbGl0YXJpYS5jby56YUjIJlDJDFigHXAAeACQAQCYAZoBoAH_AqoBAzEuMrgBA8gBAPgBAfgBApgCAaACkwHCAgQQIxgnwgIFECEYoAGYAwCIBgGSBwMwLjGgB_UE&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-serp

Not to speak for Brian, but it's possible that you see no results because there are no results to get. https://www.google.com/search?q="義包"+site%3Anihontomessageboard.com&client=ms-android-google&sca_esv=f7a9fdc91166be13&sxsrf=ADLYWIKcpmCcgNkXmk1rhMYsth5CNX_trw%3A1716556132379&ei=ZJFQZsXfFr6ykvQPlPWy-AM&oq="義包"+site%3Anihontomessageboard.com&gs_lp=EhNtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1zZXJwIiUi576p5YyFIiBzaXRlOm5paG9udG9tZXNzYWdlYm9hcmQuY29tSIs8UP8KWIg8cAN4AJABAJgB_QGgAd0FqgEFMC4zLjG4AQPIAQD4AQGYAgKgAsYBwgIHECMYJxiuAsICBRAhGKABmAMAiAYBkgcDMS4xoAfCBQ&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-serp

Hi Jamie, I sent you a message. Best regards, Ray

And to answer your question more directly, no these type of papers do not have a discussion about the quality of the sword. That is why collectors are very appreciative of having sayagaki by Tanobe-sensei, because it gives more thoughtful insight into the blade, its quality, and other considerations about the style of workmanship.

The papers are Hozon, which is the lowest of four levels that the NBTHK issues, however we do not know whether the sword has been submitted for a higher level of papers at some point.

Be aware that if the NBTHK themselves were not able or willing to pinpoint it to a specific Norimitsu, it's possible that you will not be able to get that level of specificity outside of the shinsa process.

I recommend purchasing the ebook below, which will provide you with bios for the Norimitsu who worked during the time period your sword is dated. https://www.lulu.com...ml?page=1&pageSize=4