Toryu2020

Maruisz - I would caution that bags are for storage and racks are for display - so technically you would not see a sword in a bag on a rack in a Buke household. Of course all rules are general and subject to place, time and prevailing taste. Which is to say that I have seen many people rack their swords in bags, dojo, museums and sword shops where they did this. But if you are looking for correctness I would advise that you display the swords so the koshirae may be seen. Paul has said the tsuka should face to the left which is correct, though I have heard that if you are expecting a difficult or unwanted guest you place the swords on the rack with the tsuka to the right so they are ready to use in a moments notice. You would hope of course that your guest would pick up on this and not over stay his welcome. The only absolute rule I know of is katana edge up and tachi edge down for all others exceptions abound... -t

Master of understatement! VERY interesting tsuba... -t

Brock - sorry to step on your post but I would strongly advise against using Hanwei blades. While I agree with the sentiment that one should not use true antiques for tameshigiri or iai - these Chinese blades are unreliable to the point of catastrophic failure and people have been injured. The situation has prompted the AUSKF to advise its members to use only equipment made in Japan. Not as protectionism for Japanese suppliers but as protection for their students and teachers. By extension your support of Chinese suppliers also motivates the fakers that this list goes to great lengths to decry. Use of a live blade for sword practice is inherently dangerous and should be approached with caution under the guidance of a qualified teacher. Add to this, choose your equipment with care... -t

Are we sure this is Japanese?

http://tinyurl.com/7ot7wpk Joe et al - Oshigata and high quality photos are one thing - if you really want to display your blades as art, this guy, Atarashi Yoshitaka is the man to see. He turns the greatest works in steel in to works of art in lacquer. His own father was a kantei-ka and he grew up with an appreciation for swords. The photos on the website hardly do the work justice - upon close examination it is very hard to tell that there are not made of metal. He can do custom backgrounds and even famous works of kodogu. If I had the money I can think of a few blades I'd love to see hanging on my wall... -t

JP - Start with what Ryuha do you follow? Some schools work better with certain swords and certain teachers have strong opinions about what swords should be used. It is also important that we state clearly that practice with a live blade is a very dangerous thing and should never be attempted by someone without proper experience and instruction. Use of antique swords for Iai or tameshigiri practice is anathema to the purpose of this board, which is preservation of items of irreplaceable historical value. Tameshigiri can quickly ruin a sword, and while Iai is much less destructive it is wear and tear on a blade and on scabbard and fittings as well. If you must and your teacher approves there are a couple of ways to go; For the reasons stated above Shinsakuto are best, you choose the blade configuration that is right for you and your school, you choose your own fittings and since it is all modern made you can trust the integrity of the tsuka and no one will cry foul if you put a few scratches on the blade. Use of a gunto works for many as they are made to take the abuse and generally have better shape and balance than say the swords coming out of China. But as noted they tend to be shorter and you will have to outfit them with appropriate koshirae which could eat up your budget. Then again you really shouldn't be using up old fittings on your practice sword. Though there are low quality antiques out there they are no longer making them these days. Using higher quality antique fittings is more appealing but also irresponsible. If you are on the west coast then I recommend you visit the San Francisco sword show a few times - many styles of swords at many different price ranges. There are even sellers who specifically refit old blades with minor flaws to used for Iai. The ones I have seen are well within your budget and none is an undiscovered treasure awaiting restoration. If you know what you are doing you can find old blades suitable for practice and put together older fittings to go with it for a reasonable price but this often takes time. Knowing what to look for is the problem and so many folks do not take the time to seek the right advice. I wish you success in your search and success in your study your friend in the way, -tc Muso Jiki-Den Eishin Ryu 6 Dan Renshi

Ugh! Please don't make us look at that I think I'm gonna be sick! -t

志津三郎兼氏作？ not sure about the Saburo... -t

Matt et al - I think we are seeing something like this; 元治元歳子十月日 Genji-gan toshi (or sai) Ne Ju-gatsu hi - maybe read Genji-gan Ne-doshi Jugatsu Hi A day in the First year of Genji (Ganji), year of the rat. I think John is on to something there, the Shu could be the beginning of a title such as Mondo no sho, but who can tell at this point. Might be nice to have more pictures to consider... -t

I believe Nick Nakamura and Danny Massey are both based in Louisville, There might also be someone at the Frazier with basic knowledge that could help but about that I am not certain. I would try contacting Danny thru his website. http://www.nihontocraft.com/ In the end might be kind of a long drive to be told what you already know... -t (formerly of Kentucky)

The hi appears to have age, while the horimono do not, maybe just the photos but I would want to see many more before spending money on this one... -t

Looks like the smith is Ono Yoshimitsu 大野義光 -t

...plus value - Are you wanting a translation or just hints to help you work it out on your own? -t

Look for ox-carts and Kyoto and imperial carriages or processions, images of just what you are looking for should come up with links to historical and literary connections... -t

Part of this is public versus private, If you are in someones home viewing their personal collection etiquette dictates you bow to the object, to acknowledge it and all those people and spirits that have been mentioned already - basically formal etiquette as in the tea ceremony. in a retail situation like a sword shop you would not necessarily bow unless you wanted to be very polite, I think Inami-san was doing James a service by teaching him in just this way, as a foreigner he may have been viewed with suspicion but if he were seen to be very polite and practised at handling swords he would get more consideration I am sure. Today people, especially Japanese people seem to handle swords roughly at shows and other places, I always bow to the swords before and after at a kantei-kai but see few Japanese doing the same these days although this is what we are taught. I'll admit I am a lowly martial artist, and I was taught pretty much what James details by a Japanese teacher - the reigi for viewing swords and for practising with them is similar but I never thought exclusive to budoka... -t

I'd like to see better pics of the jigane, but I'll bite - how about Darani Katsukuni? -t

Any more photos available? How about an item number? curious... -t

You have to wonder what he is hiding with that saya!

Brian - I hear what you're saying, thus I advised David to trust them. At the same time though I am trying to learn from these examples not just accept it as written. Kezuru to scrape is just as good a possibility as the others posited but lacks the correct number of strokes. Pick up a brush and write Shi as in the photo and it is easy to see how the writer could have come up with what we see. Trying my best to deform Togi, Saya, Koku and Kezuru in the same way I fail to find a good match. I have a few Japanese readers around my house and from context Togi-shi and or Saya-shi are the best fit and on initial reading what all have seen. Followed of course by "what odd characters!" Afterall who is most likely to make a shirasaya but a polisher or saya-maker. I expect everyone else has tuned this out but I am curious if Moriyama-san or Morita-san or anyone else for that matter has been able to reproduce the character we see from one known in a convincing manner. -t

Brilliant stuff James! and you built a webpage already! Seems the "bug" when it bits you, it bits you at any age. Nice call on the tantô as well, nobody famous but a very solid little sword. -t

I also considered Koku-shi 刻師 there being more strokes than for Togi-shi but not knowing if it has any carvings context would make the Togi-shi the most likely suspect. Then again given how he has deformed the kanji for -Shi it could be anything -t

David - I think you'd be better off listening to Moriyama-San, this guy has an odd way with some of his characters and though i think it maybe says Togishi-shi 研師, rather than saya-shi he clearly spotted this the first time... -t

How nice to see Stephen back in true form... -t

Certainly is a curious call given what we can see, though I do believe that koshirae are submitted separately so there is one piece of evidence that we have that the shinsa team did not. I wonder Steve would you be willing to post photos of the hamon/nakago in the area of the hamachi? Not sure it will tell us anything but as I said I'm curious now... -t

Welcome aboard James! You really must tell us all about those heady days in 1960s Tokyo. The elder Inami-san and the Japan Sword Co. in that era are legend to most of us here. Looking forward to your cntributions, -t