Carlo Giuseppe Tacchini

I wonder if there not a confusion between hagire and hakobore. Maybe. What about the hagire due to stress as the ones cited in the article ?

Under Denise M'ski kind permission, hereunder I post a link to a photoalbum containing well taken pictures of a Koa Isshin Mantetsu in Tachi mounting, posted on another forum and that I think can be of interest here too and worth to be stored in the forum for future references. Quoting Morita-San : "Made in The South Manchurian Rail Way Co.. The blade is a Koa-Isshin Mantetsu sword. This Tachi-sword is very very rare. This is a sword presented to the long service employees for 25 years by the company (S.M.R.). ...omississ... sword was made in 1941 by S.M.R. The signature is Tachi-mei but most other Koa-Isshin swords are Katana-mei. So your this blade is Koa-Isshin Tachi-sword (This is very very unusual ). Serial number is a Japanese Katakana character "Yo" and number Kanji character" 352 " (Yo 352)." So many thanks to Morita-San for having spotted it. http://photographybyflint.com/Sword/ In case of deletion of the Photoalbum in the future, pictures has been stored for my "Tsubame Project" so they'll be available under request at tsubame1@tin.it . Ohmura's page on the subject : http://www.k3.dion.ne.jp/~j-gunto/gunto_056.htm Enjoy.

Correct, IMHO. In battle or in extreme conditions as Aratameshi : http://www.nihontocraft.com/Aratameshi_Nihonto.html This doesn't mean I totally agree with the linked article.

I've a laquered sake cup commemorative of the 2600° year of foundation of the Empire (1940 a.D.) issued by the municipality of Hiroshima and it isn't radioactive (well, it doesn't shine in the dark). :lol: The A-bomb Dome itself is quiet safe after >60 years : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:A-Bo ... ose-up.jpg

Funds and Bureaucracy, as always. Unwanted. The perfect word. Most of the museums inherited these collections and are "forced" to preserve them even if their main educational target is different from Far East Art. Curators, when specialized in Japanese art, are victims of bureaucracy as the objects. And even when they are specialized, often they have to make decisions about how to use the ever-shrinking funds. An inportan museum in north-eastern Italy is a perfect example. Lacquers come first. Then armors (because they are lacquered). If anything remains, blades. Guess about what the curator is specialized in ? That's part of their work. But when the same free offer comes from a professional that has already worked for the same museum ? The only (sad) reply is : the curator has changed and the above mentioned reasons plays a role in the new course. Perfet for YouTube ! :lol:

No more Monthly Kantei page

Sad ? Xç?K"§* Believe it or not, authorities don't allow free volunteer's help, *even offered by ones that once were paid for it by the same authority*, as private experts. Sometimes a shortcut is allowed, but like a drop in the Pacific Ocean. Mine too. Documented and denounced to authorities, with almost no consequence other then putting further limits to collection's access (and, consequently, control).

On due time, I missed it in my trips to UK.

Is there any chance the room we're talking about is the following one from Ian's book ? (Ian if there is any problem in posting the pics let me know and I'll remove them immediatly).

Its great-great-great-etc.-father :D :

Hi John. Drop a mail to Paul Martin. Seems to me to remember he mentioned the shinsa in one of his e-mails to me .

Yes it is. There is article on Dr. T webpage about the matter and the differences in "signing" between the schools. EDIT : http://www2.una.edu/takeuchi/DrT_Jpn_Cu ... migaki.htm

My fault. In that site search and click on "(Echizen) Yasustugu" under the Shinto section in the left scrolling column.

http://www.nihontoantiques.com/gallery.htm Nanbantetsu tsuba : http://yakiba.com/tsuba_nanbantetsu.htm

I'm not at home and can't post pics but If you're referring to NihonTo, unless a miracle, there aren't. EDIT : discernable by pattern. They don't look different from well made tamahagane swords.

I would like to add that, at that time, real wootz/pulad had a very remunerative market in middle east, so should have been quiet not profitable to sell it to the japaneses as "raw material" when elsewhere it was sold as precious metal, especially knowing that other steel would have been welcomed (by japaneses) the same way. As per the gourd shape once, discussing this very same topic, it was rised a good supposition : Big mills = ingots well shaped, something "standard" looking. Small mills = roughly made (gourd shaped) ingots. Not necessarely wootz just becasue of the shape of the ingot (possibly) as many small mills used the crucible to obtain carbon steel, but not necessarely and only for producing wootz. The fact that wootz begun highly appreciated by europeans after the secret of its production disappeared (the top level ones not yet re-created) and the following confusion wootz/indian steel is also a factor we should consider in discussing this matter.

Again, the word wootz is improperly used for generic indian steel, there are no sources stating the nature of the different steels imported and Masahide used Nanban Tetsu that definitively doesn't mean "wootz/pulad", there is no way to know which type and how much was used. Kanzan merely talks about "Nanbantetsu" and "western steel". Let's try to not mix "Nanbantetsu" with "wootz" just to prove previous statements.

Only if re-melted, becoming something else then wootz-pulad. Otherwise it definitively isn't for the reasons quoted by Ian. And still it have to be fixed *what* is intended for wootz. The word is used for all indian steel, and that's incorrect.

Added to the "wish list". I've reached the top of my budget for books for this month and the next 2 (blame Paul :lol:).

Big Thumb up to support Peter's suggestion. In Italy we've the same "Monty Python" situation by WWII (1940 if I'm not mistaken...) about sword legislation, but importing with Fedex never gave me troubles. For now.

Thanks for sharing, Chris.

I wonder about the eventuality of a catalogue...

Guess you'r thinking about it as a memory of your father. If so, yes it's worth, IMHO. One day you'll have sons too and might be they'll have the same feeling.

Ouch ! Hope my wife don't stumple accidentally in this website ! Welcome. nice works there.

That's because you've married a Japanese. Try a southern italian next time. :lol: Soooo right (at least for me). Meet you again when you'll have your first heir walking around asking "dad what are you hiding there ?" ...