Toryu2020

Nice find John, a piece well worth investigating. Hoping you'll be able to share some more photos, -t

A ceiling fan? Whatever it is I think it's cool. -t

Jan - Nothing wrong with your eyes, and mine it turns out. Thought I had made a mistake but indeed this is what it says in the book. No oshigata of that particular mei, something we may have to look for. I agree it is very strange since all my other references list Motoyasu as the third son of Motonao... -t

Jan et al - According to Fukunaga Suiken writing in Satsuma no Katana to Tsuba; The date of Motoyasu's death is not understood. However there is a tanto dated Bunka 5 (1808), where he gives his age as 76, we can therefore say that he was born in Kyoho 18 (1733). And given that there is a sword dated Bunka 8 (1811), he lived to an exceptionally old age for his time (at least 79). hopin this helps... -t

Interesting question Stephen - I should be very surprised if Hon'ami Koji, my teacher, in Kamakura would do such a thing, but I shall have to ask him sometime. You might speak to Paul Martin as I know he is well acquainted with Hon'Ami Koshu, who might offer kinpun but with him being elevated to Living National Treasure, I cannot imagine it would be cheap. -t Thinking out loud, maybe there is a way to use photography to digitally recreate the mei, make color prints and this could go along with the sword as part of its history/documentation?

Peter - This Oshigata is from a book by Fujishiro, a study of Naotane, Masahide and Kiyomaro published during the war years. We shall have to examine your blade more closely to determine when it was made as the signature could easily have been added later. Kajihei is the nickname of Hosoda Naomitsu a student of Naokatsu who took to forging famous Shinshinto works when there was no market for swords in the Meiji period. If you can find Harry Watsons' translations of the Nihonto Koza Shinshinto volume there is an excellent article on how to spot gimei and particularly the work of Kajihei that is well worth the cost. -t

Peter - attached is a published signature that is considered gimei - I think you will find it interesting for comparison. -t

Issara - A lot of good questions and hard to give good answers in short concise bursts but here goes; I would look to three sources Ogasawara-ryu Yabusame and Ogasawara-ryu kyudo (kyujutsu) and Yagyu Shingan-ryu, a school of fighting in armour. This last uses the tachi I believe much as it would have been used in individual combat in the earlier periods. Certainly the sword had evolved some by the time this school emerged but I think you can get a clear idea of just what was possible and practical with the weapon when on foot. Ogasawara-ryu and Takeda-ryu Yabusame have cutting techniques from horseback, though not often practised. The biggest obstacle may be the danger to horses while training so these techniques may only be seen in the dojo. I know of at least one guy who used to cut targets from the back of a motorcycle while his deshi operated the "iron horse". Making bows or making arrows does not carry the same cultural or spiritual weight as making swords - the Emperor afterall is first and foremost the head priest for the Shinto religion. The making of swords involves the participation of the gods in a magical event that results in a tangible item that is way more than its constituent parts. Swords (blades) were a necessary part of Shinto ritual from early on. Therefore if you are a power broker in the world of the samurai you need swordmakers at hand not just to supply your troops but also to provide blades for dedication ceremonies and such. And in Kamakura there were a lot of new temples and shrines raised up by the new Shogun, so they had need of a lot of swords. I have my own ideas about the use of the tachi but feel there are answers out there already, I am sure you can find good info and I envy you the search for those answers, -your friend in the way -t

脇差入門 - Wakizashi Nyumon as stated may be a Shibata publication. 趣味の日本刀 Shumi no Nihonto - an introductory text, reprinted many times very common. 百剣百話 Hyakken Hyaku wa - 100 swords 100 stories, collectors talk about their favorite swords. 刀匠全集 Tosho Zenshu - a mini meikan and as stated usually two volumes, very common. 脇差の魅力 Wakizashi no Miryoku - the charm of wakizashi by Shibata. 日本刀辞典 Nihonto Jiten - a price book, many editions very common. 刀剣銘字典 Token Meijiten - The only one I haven't seen or do not recall seeing. 桃山時代の刀剣 Momoyama Jidai no Token - an exhibition catalog. They can all be found for around $10 except the Meijiten which looks like it sells for around $30. Good information perhaps but most of it will be found in other texts. mho -t

futatsu do - two bodies ni no do - number two waist cut most saidan mei will make the clear distinction by adding the article "no" -t

Klaus - While it is possible your little kozuka comes from Wales, I think it more likely Japanese. Google Kanzan and Jittoku, I think youll find your answer... -t

We need to examinethe record sof this police station from that time, and perhaps other official records from any local office that dealt with the Army. Why? because the Japanese might not have asked this soldier for photo ID and fingerprints but how did they know to recognize him as "a man in charge of the regiment" (Butai no sekininsha) After more than ten years under a military government I highly doubt that the police officers would release anything of value to just any soldier. The fact he is identified as sekininsha means they knew something more of this guy than his rank which would have been apparent from his uniform. So i would want to examine the daily logs of the police station leading up to this date, had he been in to the station previously? Leaving aside the English note for a minute, why would they use his full name? Why not Colydaybimore as a single word family name? EG; Takahashi Shacho, Yamanaka Taisa, or Yamashita Shogun? Given the confusion over first and last names that exists to this day when communicating between Japanese and Americans how can we know which is first name and which is last when the scribe did not include any commas while being very precise otherwise? i would want to see more forms, documents and writing examples from the original scribe to see what can be gleaned from his writing habits. Could his name be Corday? could it be Gordy? Instead of Bimore, could this have been a V? Vimo, De veimo? Could Henk be on to something? Imagine as he comes to the house looking for swords Tokugawa asks "what was your name? the uncomprehending American repeats over and over as he paws the mans stuff "this is neat, could I buy more!" I doubt the Japanese have these swords but they do have the answers buried in their records...

Not an octopus but also not a bad looking tanto... -t

Hakoti - The standard answer around here is to use the KANJI pages at the top of this page to try to decipher it yourself. Really not a difficult mei - if you are pressed for time or dont want to bother looking it up yourself, just say so there are many here who will give you the answer. You might also hear some say "be sure to sign your posts" FWIW it looks to be an honest sword and signature - good luck -t

Somebody else trying to raise some cash before the Dai Token Ichi? -t

I for one think it looks the way it is supposed to look, No evidence of loss that I can see, I would think the cut-outs would be deeper if there was brass inlaid in them. Not your everyday piece, nice find. -t

very cool indeed! -t

To me the estimates are way too high on most of the items, there are some curious things in the write-ups as well. That being said there are some great looking armors here and several swords I should like to see in person. Looking forward to reviews from those on the scene... -t

Further - On the question of the tama and dragon - they did pictureque hamon and this is a possibility but my recollection is that in the Tamba n/k Yoshimichi school and I think Hizen Masahiro, there was a fashion for including a "Sun and Moon" in the monouchi. My thought is that this was pointed out to us as a kantei point. Of course my thinking is getting weaker and weaker these days so I could be wrong... -t

FWIW I think pre-1600 it is much more likely that ubu-mumei means the piece was for some arsenal or to outfit a large army. These swords might even have had the talismanic horimono engraved as part of the order, following the religious conviction of their leader or the region. This would especially be true if making swords for one of the large Buddhist communities and if the maker himself was Buddhist. There are many swords in shrines with dedication signatures - so while I feel that some may have made and offered up unsigned blades this was not a rule. We should also remember that making a sword for ceremony is different than dedicating a sword to the shrine, asking for good fortune. In the Shinto period I would echo what others have said, I think it more likely that things operated much as they do today, with a smith making three or more swords for a commission or with the odd unsigned blade laying around awaiting completion. I feel a number of sources have said as much. Clive -I think if it seen as rising to the level of Yoshimichi, I would be happy with that. There were several generations afterall and they had to do student work at some point and so if it is an early piece by a Tamba n/k artist it might not have got a signature. my opinion only... -t

Don Not a bad start. The first is interesting since it seems to use the ken-katabami mon, with just one plugged with brass. I wonder if you see evidence that others of the cut-outs were filled? Also of interest is the two plugs either side of the nakago-ana, could this have been mounted on a wall somewhere? The second does indeed match Dirk's motif quite well, i think better photos of each are in ordero say more... -t

異色ぶりがあり 　"Ishokuburi ga ari" is the phrase he uses. I believe it has a positive sense to it - the other evidence would be that he included these works in his magnum opus which I think is a pretty positive statement as well... -t

On the general topic of muneyaki I found a few lines of interest from Fukunaga Sensei; "Muneyaki is nie-deki, when it is nioi it is often referred to as mune-ba (mune-ha). Muneyaki makes the area where it is applied stronger because it will not bend and it prevents kirikomi being too deep. If the muneyaki is too strong however it makes the sword prone to breakage, so there are smiths who will try to erase it if they see it." and "Tobiyaki has nie in the center or nie may form the outline, if it is oblong we call it tama. Tobiyaki that are seen in the mune are called muneyaki or munetsuru. Yubashiri is where the jinie (has gathered up) and is strong in one area but the outline is fuzzy, akin to seeing the milky way in the night sky" and then this is the stuff that I get the most kick out of; "One theory of why munyaki came to be (more common?) is the practice of commanders encamped during battle would strike stones on the mune of their swords (hiuchi) as a sign of fortune, a prayer for luck in battle." We know that it used to be common practice for the wife to strike a flint as a purification or prayer for safety when someone left the house on a trip, so it was something like this but I cannot imagine this last bit would have been done. If I had to say it seems we've come full circle - what I take from all this is we need to look at how muneyaki is applied and in what era and in consideration of the school/work-style of the smith. As my Japanese friends would say "Case by case." Sorry John not sure we got anywhere closer to helping you with your sword... -t

OK so I am not arguing, I witnessed an argument between friends and what they said got me to thinking... I was curious as to what my references had to say about the quality of muneyaki - I had seen and read it was a kantei point but could not recall any discussions on the differences so I went digging. Specifically on the Rai school I found Tanobe Sensei describing the work of Rai Kuniyuki in his Meihin Katana Ezu; "in general the hadori shows midare in the lower half, especially the koshi. In the upper half what you see is hirosugu-ha cho with ashi and just as it says in the old books you see a lot of yubashiri in the mune, in most works muneyaki can be seen. It is the norm to see muneyaki in Odeki works such as hitatsura and choji midare but to show muneyaki in a gentle hadori such as sugu-ha cho, that is what is unique (outstanding) in the works of Kuniyuki. This is inherited by Niji Kunitoshi, Rai Kunitoshi, Rai Kunimitsu and Rai Kunitsugu." From this I conclude; 1. This sounds a lot like what has already been said about Rai works. 2. It was part of their work-style. 3. at least in this case, for this one writer, it seems it is a positive feature. 4. As Franco pointed out long ago, it is yubashiri or yubashiri-like within the works of this group. I have not found anything to suggest that they didnt know it was there or seeing it they wished they could erase it. I agree we cannot say with certainty that it was intentional but my feeling is that it was. I am not inclined to fight over it if there are other opinions. It seems in the few hours that this thread has been unlocked Chris clarified his view quite succinctly and I for one did not see anything off-base there. (not that youre waitin around for my approval) -t

Not Yoshisuke I'm thinking or if it is maybe it has been re-tempered too dull looking for Shimada. mho -t