jrs

Col. Hartley was my mentor from when I was age 13 until his death. I looked through the auction catalog and remember some of the pieces from his collection. He was always generous sharing his knowledge and passion. Even being a teenager, he sent swords home with me to study at length, many being juyo. I'm not sure I could be so trusting. I miss our visits Col. James

beautiful craftsmanship. I like everything you did but the door/drawer pulls are my absolute favorite part!

I did ask him. He wasn't very forthcoming. He said it should go to shinsa. James

Mr. Benson polished the blade 2 years ago. James

Thanks for everyones interesting comments. I can see the hamon run into the nakago, the hadori runs off just past the machi and one side of the nakago is filed down with almost no shinogi left, so I do believe that this blade is suriage/o-suriage, unless someone went to great lengths to make it look that way on purpose. I did find another picture that shows an area of the "anomaly" more clearly. Plus a few more showing the hada. James This one show it above the hamon as a white area in the bottom 1/2 of the picture. The activity in question is made of very fine nie i believe because it looks moist and it sparkles a little. In this example it runs for several inches mimicking the hamon. In other places, it is just a cloud of clump above the hamon. It doesn't appear near the shinogi at all. And hear are clearer pictures of the hada.

It is a mokume with Masame elements to it. Or vice-versa. James

more pictures

Thanks for the picture Paul. I'll try to take more pictures of the blade today and see what people think. James

The blade has seen use and many polishes. It just seems older than shin Shinto to me.

The blade has been a conundrum to me. I bought it in gun to mounts. Pretty bad polish but the hada was visible. Sent it to be polished, new habaki and shirasaya made. The Nagasaki is just under 24", suriage or o suriage. 3 mekugi Ana. Maru mune. It had an unreadable mei, something Mitsu, which the polisher said was bad and he removed it. He suggested it go to shinsa and that was my plan, but after I got it back from him, other things kept happening to prevent me spending the money for shinsa, so I've just been holding on to it. One on side the Harmon is very gunome and on the other more suguha, but the activity in question appears on both sides.

They are not as defined as the hamon, but instead look like "moist" spots. James

I have books and references, but I am stumped at defining this accurately. I wish it photographed better because its very visible in person. Some times it is a small cluster, in other places it key run for several inches above the hamon. The best way I can describe it is that its like a reflection or shadow of the hamon, but because it touches the hamon, or is just above the hamon, I don't know it would be called utsuri. I'm attaching another picture in which I circled the areas and have arrows pointing to what I'm talking about, just to show the exact locations. Compare between the 2 pictures. James

Hey Everyone. What is this activity called? There are patches of nie above the hamon on this blade. I'm not sure how to classify it. If it was by the shinogi, it would be utsuri, but just above the hamon I don't know what to call it. Any help would be nice. Sorry about the pictures, it was very hard to capture on the camera. Thanks in advance, James

Looks like the grooves were forged instead of being cut, IMHO. James

Col. Hartley once quipped to me that when the shinsa team couldn't make a decision, they said Bungo Takeda. James

Jean, I did understand that. What I was trying to say is that with the similarities that I see between the two blades, perhaps the were made by the same hand or someone very closely related, even though the mei do not match, considering the "lost signature" James

I have a blade signed Soshu Masatsugu that has a similar "feel" to the styling of your blade, but the mei do not match. AS you can see the tip is broken off. Not sure if I will ever get around to having this polished. James

Thanks to everyone for their input. I will only be in Germany for 2 weeks, May 11th to the 25th. I will be flying in and out of Frankfurt but don't know if I will be able to stop at the shop that was mentioned although I will be near by. I may try to stop there during a planned 2 or 3 day trip to... (I don't remember the exact name, but it's the tallest mountain in Germany, on the Austrian border), if my travel partners will allow it. If too many plans haven't already be made, perhaps I can visit some of the suggestions. Thanks again to everyone. Jay (James)

I'll be traveling next month to Koln(Cologne) Germany and was wondering if there were any collectors, museums or shops in the area where I may be able to see swords. If anyone knows of any interesting destinations, please let me know. Thanks Jay Stephenson

So why are " good bones" considered good. It seems like rough craftsmanship to me. I understand it can be indicative to a particular school or maker but it still seems lazy to me unless the out coming effect was completely intentional at the time of manufacture. just trying to understand.

Can someone elaborate? I see rough spots and dimples, etc...but I still don't understand exactly what "good bones" refers to on the example picture. Maybe if someone can highlight the areas it will help.

Darcy, I loved the Bizen publication and appreciate the work of everyone who was involved in its production. I, like most others here, will be happy to pre-pay for the next book, BUT, I'd like to do more. I don't need multiple copies, so I'm not comfortable buying multiples. Would it be possible for me to "sponsor" a Juyo translation? I don't make enough money to indulge in the blades that I like, but, I can afford to make a modest $100 contribution to your work, in the spirit of research and education. I had this idea immediately after reading your original post but have hesitated in posting publicly. The only reason I am now is because maybe some other members might join in to help out. I hope this doesn't offend in any way. I believe in what you are doing, understand the burden, and wish that I could offer more technical assistance. James Stephenson

Col. Hartley was my friend and mentor for 25 years, since I was 13 years old. I can't imagine having a more knowledgeable or generous teacher. Who else would send home a Juyo Shizu Kaneuji, just one among many blades, with a 15 year old to study at their leisure? I stopped by the funeral home tonight and just wanted to let everyone know that his family is celebrating the wonderful life the Col. lived and send their thanks to all of his friends the in world of Nihonto. James "Jay" Stephenson

The polisher advised that the mei on the blade was bad, and so it was removed while being restored. I will be submitting it for shinsa to find out who it is attributed to early 2010. I will try to take better pictures to show the hamon when I have the time. There are a few "before" pictures of the blade in the original post linked to above. I do have a few more if anyone wants to see them but they are not very good quality. The only other details I can share right now (I'm at work and don't have the blade in front of me) are that it measures 24", has maru mune and the hamon is very gunome-midare on one side and more suguha on the other.