Bobcat

I was reading some of the sword care threads. Some of them mentioned using isopropyl alcohol for removing old oil. What effect would that have on rust spots like the following? Is there anything else that could be used on these spots to remove the rust or improve the appearance of the sword? A bit of trivia: The Japanese masters wouldn't have used isopropyl alcohol on their swords. Isopropyl alcohol was developed commercially in Linden, New Jersey, in 1920, and was the world's first commercial petrochemical. I don't think isopropyl alcohol exists in nature.

Someone at the NY sword club meeting suggested I get such a kit. Do you have any specific products and/or sources for them? Do they come with instructions in English? Thanks...

I put my sword near a window in order to get better light for photographs. I ended up with nice reflections of the window.

I took my sword to a meeting of the New York Metropolitan Japanese Sword Club at Times Square yesterday. They seem to be a nice bunch of collectors. One young guy has several Tsunahiro blades. Several people took a look at the sword, including an old Japanese man. They said the sword is genuine. Based on the width of the blade and the way the hamon is straight near the habaki (that's visible in the photos I posted), it's slightly younger than you guys estimated; it was probably made around 1700. They said the blade is healthy and should look really good after polishing. They recommended that the polishing be done in Japan. The habaki is not original; it probably dates from about 1900. Likewise for the cloth bag.

From what I've read, it would cost more to polish the sword than it's worth. If I intended to sell the sword, it would not be worth polishing. But I'm going to keep the sword, so the question is: Is it worth it to me to spend the money to have it polished? I can't afford it now, but I'm going to inherit a decent amount of money when my mother dies (she's 80), and using some of the money to have my father's sword polished and preserved seems appropriate.

I finally got to take some more photos of my sword. They didn't come out as sharp as I'd like, despite using a tripod and manual focus. The dark bands are reflections from the window. Here we go. There are a total of twenty. Full view: The point: The chip in the blade: Closeups of the left side: Closeups of the right side:

It turns out there's writing on the bag! One character looks like the number 2, but I have no idea what the other three characters are. I took a close look at the blade with my untrained eye. I see only one tiny nick. I don't see any cracks. Photographs will have to wait for better lighting.

Gabriel, I should be easy to spot -- I'll be the clueless newbie with the sword. In a previous post, you gave some suggestions for taking photos. I'm going to try to take more photos soon. But what color background would you suggest? White, black, something else? I'll get some posterboard to lay it on.

You guys were all extremely helpful. Thanks especially for the work regarding the mei. My plan is to take the sword to the next Metropolitan New York Japanese Sword Club meeting and see what the folks there have to say. Are any of you in the area and attend the meetings?

OK, thanks! All you guys have been extremely helpful.

What do you mean by "swordsmith art name"? Is that the name of a particular swordsmith shop or the type of work they do or...?

I see that Moses Becerra is Vice President of the New York Metropolitan Japanese Sword Club. Do you know if he'd be able to look at it if I brought it to one of their meetings, or should I just take it out to Long Island? Also, I really don't understand the mei: Yamashiro-no-kuni Ju Minamoto-no-Tsunahiro What do the various words mean? One is a location? Does one identify a particular individual, or is it the name of group of swordsmiths?

Thanks for all the replies. I'm still in shock that this is a valuable sword. I see that Moses (Moises?) Becerra is a 2+ hour drive each way from me, but it would be worth the trip for a professional evaluation. Gabriel, that is some sort of powder on the mei. I'm guessing that someone put it there at some point to make it easier to read. My father had taken the sword to someone many years ago, but I don't know what came of that. Now I wish I asked my father more about it. Sorry for the quality of the photos. I just laid the sword on a bath towel, and the bits of the towel obscure the edge of the blade so it looks ugly. It looks much better in person. Jacques, 2 million yen is US$19,000. Are you saying my sword could be worth that much? Perhaps if in perfect condition... Thanks again, guys. And, no, I won't try to do anything to the sword.

My father died recently, and I have a sword he brought back from Japan in WWII. I posted these pics on another board, and it was identified by someone there as mei Yamashiro-no-kuni Ju Minamoto-no-Tsunahiro, being made circa 1673-1688. The length of the blade is approx 29". It's also in a cloth sheath, which I'm told is authentic. That other message board is for Japanese firearms, not swords. I found you guys, so I hope I can get more information here. I'd like to know more about the sword. Specifically: Can someone give me a rough idea of how much it's worth? Basically a guess? Does anyone know a local expert I can take it to for inspection/appraisal? I'm in New Jersey (USA). I don't intend to sell the sword, but would consider having it polished if it would help preserve it. Also, please be gentle with me, as the terminology is completely new to me.