Toryu2020

Day one!

Eric - if you are asking me, I have to say I do not know who might have made these though my impression is that it is later work, say 1800's... -t

I would say it is not Ono since they were an Owari group so they didn't do pieces as detailed as yours - simple Owari and Yagyu designs. The "anchor" I believe is a rice bail hook and not an anchor... -t

They do show up - look at the Japanese websites - most have an "Antiques" or "Other" page where these will be listed... -t

No worries Sam - I am proud to share it, no sense in hiding it in a closet. The presentation is by the NBTHK/AB these are usually open to all attendees though sometimes there is a small fee... -t

Bunkacho has extended the wait to at least four weeks - express service no longer an option. They claim to be severely backed up…

I will indeed be at the San Francisco show for sure and so will the sword. The NBTHK/AB are doing a presentation on Nanboku-cho Bizen and this sword will be available for hands-on examination...

Like a stripper with a bad tattoo - I like strippers too though...

PS - I own a Juyo To-ken Morisuke with a serious chip - some cannot look at it, I love it!

Historically significant if the chip was indeed acquired in the Sakurada-mon Incident. If you want romanticism this has it in buckets...

The NTHK Novice Course was recently re-edited and is available now. FREE with any new membership to the NCJSC... Publications (ncjsc.org) -tch

You could try contacting Mike Yamasaki of tetsugendo.com he can help with the restoration. Jimmy Hayashi, the top polisher in the U.S. is located in San Francisco... -t

Yes

Try looking up "Kyogoku" -t

Sadly Charles, not really Our regular monthly meeting is on the 21st, we would invite you there but it seems your dates don't line up. The Asian Art Museum has two or three swords in the permanent displays upstairs but they are not much to look at. Beyond that all the old antique stores that might have had swords are all gone now. If you are travelling about town and find yourself at the Palace of The Legion of Honor, out front looking out onto the bay is a cenotaph dedicated to the Kanrin Maru, the first ship to sail from Japan to the U.S. Not all that exciting but we always bring our Japanese guests to see it when they are in town. If you're looking for Japanese food I highly recommend Ryoko's - absolutely the best in the City... -t

I would have to agree with Nobody - the everyday soldier would be employed to dig trenches and dry moats as well help with castle construction - so reminiscent of a workingman samurai... -t

I will have a table, looking forward to seeing everyone. -tch

Here’s one from my collection

A side note - ranking of swordsmith and sword schools has been a thing since the Edo period. One popular way to do these rankings is to split them into East and West groups like a ranking system for Sumo. You can find these “Banzuke” for all kinds of artists and public figures. I am attaching a banzuke for sword fittings artists. It should not be hard to find a banzuke for swordmakers.

It was a smaller team this year so we did not process as many items as in previous shinsa. That being said pass/fail rate was consistent right around 50%. It seems no matter where we perform these events, Chicago, Tampa, San Francisco or Orlando the pass/fail rate is pretty much the same. -tch

Lewis - I agree that Norishige was probably a senior student to Masamune and the only one of the Jutetsu to actually work alongside him. In the end this grouping is just a way to remember the names of the smiths that showed the influence of the Soshu-den. Imagine packing up all your sword-making equipment and travelling across a war-torn Japan for a few months study in Kamakura. The more likely scenario is that the armies of Ashikaga Takauji travelled about the country and with them went the swords of Kamakura, local smiths got a look at these and attempted to recreate what they saw... All great makers regardless, -t

Sad news - he always showed up to the shinsa with stacks of good swords...

Shots from the Shinsa room day one and two.