Jim Manley

Okan, a bit snarky. It was exactly as I said. A friend acquired it, I shot a single photo and asked for any info that could be provided. i didn’t buy it, don’t own it and am not selling it.

A buddy recently acquired this tsuba. I took this one photo and would much appreciate any insights members could offer. thanks much Jim manley

Kajihei on top. Papered TH Naotane Wakizashi below

Finally got a chance to sit with the Kajihei-Naotane yesterday. I selected this Naotane Wakizashi for comparison. The proportions look good, the hamon on the Kajihei has more activity. The hada on the Naotane is a bit less pronounced.

Solid Gold habaki from Nambokucho, Yasuyuki.

I was the buyer. As a Naotane collector it was a “must have” . The blade, shipped in April was lost in the mail only re-emerging in Japan October 3. It was immediately turned around and only reached my eager hands October 9. The workmanship is wonderful and I’ve barely had time to study it. At first glance the workmanship appears more similar to Naokatsu. Even more interesting, at least for me, was that Tonobe Sensei recognized its unique importance and applied sayagaki attesting to it as a recognized Kajihei forgery.

Yoshitane dragons on a Naotane. Both signed. The shinsa papers address both Naotane and Yoshitane’s signatures .

Sorry for the delay. The sword was shipped registered mail from Japan. It was mistakenly shipped to my PO Box in Jackson, WY I had a hold mail request in place as I was going to be away for 6 weeks. The tracking no. Showed the delivery to Jackson. I made dozens of calls to the post office none of which were answered. In spite of the hold mail order the post office sent the blade back to Japan two days before I returned. It went missing in Salt Lake. I initiated a missing parcel search and met with the Jackson post master on several occasions. In summary the post office is at best indifferent. I have not given up hope that it was placed in the wrong container or ?. But it has been nearly 3 months. The tracking number has not been scanned in the interim. Theft appears the most likely scenario. If the package were somewhere in the USPS system the tracking no.would reappear. ‘I’ll have flyers in San Fran and will answer any questions I can. I tremendously appreciate that so many took time to respond. Who knows, maybe I’ll get lucky.

A few dragons. no. 1 Kunihide / Masahide joint work Wakizashi no. 2&3 Yoshitane horimono on Naotane blades No. 4 Sukashi horimono on a Naokatsu katana

Sadly I must report another stolen sword during shipment by the US Postal Service. This katana went missing from the Salt Lake City USPS distribution Center in early May. It is possibly still in this area or along the West Coast. The blade is a signed Naotane, in shira saya. Additionally there is Saya gaki by Tonobe Sensei stating the blade is Gimei and the work of notorious forger Kajihei. As I collect this smith & school the piece was of particular interest to me. I will gladly reimburse any fellow collector plus a generous reward for its recovery. Feel free to PM me with any information you might have.

At about 1300 hrs today, January 19, 2023, two blades were delivered by the USPS to my house in St. Louis, MO. Like all of us I suppose I had fretted since the Japanese dealer informed me he had received the export permit and the blades would be at the mercy of...... who knows? I have the EMS Dispatch note in hand from Japan Post. The two blades were shipped on January 13, 2023! They cleared customs in Chicago and made it onto my doorstep in only 6 days! No damages, No issues. This shows what the system is capable of when everything works. Now I'm going to buy a lottery ticket. Thank you Japan Post, US Customs and USPS, Great Job.

I skipped second photo jim

A friend just found this nice Umabari at a gun show and I’d like to help him understand it a bit better. I think what’s there is a poem but we sure could use a bit of translation assistance. Thsnks jim Manley

Could anyone help with a translation of this Saya Gaki? Thanks Jim Manley

Not exactly a "Royal" but here is a Wakizashi made by Akamatsu Masanori during the Onin war siege of Fuoka Castle. Masanori was assisted by Osafune Munemitsu & Katsumitsu. He made few blades and all of them were political gifts. This blade is presently in Japan awaiting NBTHK shinsa. Masanori was known to have made only 14 blades, this one, No. 15 surfaced in the US a few decades ago.

I’m struggling with this mei. It is lightly struck with a very fine chisel. Dated 1944 . My “guess” is Arimasa but I have 0 confidence in this . It looks like Mino-Seki work to me. ‘Thanks. Jim

Sorry Bruce, not a stamp, just a scuff mark. But here is a Teruhiro that has a stamp. jim

A bit of assistance would be appreciated . I’m thinking this is Masamura or Takamura? thanks. Jim

More pix. notice the Nobutaka, Star stamped and numbered 218. Signed tachi mei.

More photos

Here are 5 blades all by Yoshihara Kuniie I, three signed Kuniie,and one each by the other Mei’s he used, Nobutaka and Akihito. It’s interesting to compare them and note the differences as well as their similarities. No. 3, in the middle, signed Nobutaka especially interesting I think I’ll try to add a few more photos. Jim

A great question an an issue I certainly considered. Because the space is below ground and surrounded by concrete and steel (even overhead) the area maintains a temperature of about 63 degrees F / 17 degrees C. I only heat it occasionally when I have guests who might be uncomfortable. While it might not be visible in the photo, there is a humidistat on the wall. The humidity stays in the range of 48 percent. My thoughts were that minimizing variations in temperature and humidity would lessen expansion and contraction of the saya as and lacquer work. The area gets no sunlight and is in darkness most of the time lessening the possibility of damage from UV light. I have noted that newer shira saya’ s continue to contract as they loose additional moisture. As for the blades, I’ve had no issues of rust developing but am a devoted user of oil. I purchased several boxes of micro fiber cloths and clean every blade before returning it to its designated place. If you have any suggestions for improvements I would appreciate any thoughts you might have.

I started collecting in the late 80’s . We have a good group in St. Louis and we get together, show off and compare swords as often as possible. I’ve been most fortunate in that I’ve never had to sell anything. The COVID lock down provided an opportunity to catalog and organize the lot. I’m hoping some or all of the grandsons will show an enthusiasm so we can share them. jim

Sorry, I didn’t check my photo before I hit sent. The previous photo is the reverse side. I’m struggling with photos as all are too large to attach .