Nihonto Chicken

Thanks for the reassurance! Re relative artistic merit, though I know little about kodogu, I had thought that the fuchi was the best piece, given that it is signed, consists of a thick gold overlay on the copper base, and exhibits much finer nanako and work in general. To me the tsuba is somewhat reminiscent of dockside Nagoya, though much better work (still not up to the level of the fuchi, IMO). In any event, unless the wolf comes to the door, I intend to retain the sword intact and divest it all in one piece when the time comes*. *"Everybody has to die, but I always believed an exception would be made in my case. Now what?" - William Saroyan (statement to the Associated Press, five days before his death on May 13, 1981)

In this case there are no pockets in the saya to accommodate the implements implied by the tsuba ana, so the seppa overlap has no real effect other than visual. Still, you may well be correct. I can only say that the rather well known dealer who sent the sword to Japan for shinsa opined that it was in his opinion stone dead original from prior to the Meiji era.

The old fifty-fifty ninety rule. I can never remember which ana goes on which side, and so, of course, I chose wrong when I put it all back together after the photos.

Thanks for the responses. Well, without further encouragement, I guess I may just shelve this notion and instead prepare my cadre of battered and butchered Bungo for appropriate shinsa appreciation. :lol:

Nice pieces, particularly the moon and clouds, it reminds me of my all-time favorites by Natsuo:

I am wondering whether it is worthwhile to submit the koshirae of a papered sword of mine to the coming NCJSC sponsored shinsa this coming August. The sword was papered hozon to eisho Norimitsu by the NBTHK in 1998. It was opined by the American agent who sent the sword to Japan for the papers that it was original as the last samurai had handled it and had not been futzed with by collectors since. Below are some quickie photos of the accouterments: I haven't shown the saya, it is a plain black lacquer without pockets for the implements as suggested by the tsuba ana. It is original old Japanese lacquer, but has numerous small cracks and dings, but no major structural damage. However, it's definitely not in first class condition, been knocked around some. The only signed koshirae piece is the fuchi, which is a heavy gold overlay on copper, exhibiting a high relief dragon and ken with fine nanako covered by black lacquer in the field. The kashira is plain black horn. One seppa is gold foil covered, the other has apparently lost this. The tsuba appears to be shakudo with gold highlights, and the habaki is a rain or cat scratch silver foil over copper. The menuki are red copper and shakudo. I have always wondered whether this might have been a court sword. Besides the horn kashira and nice metal fittings, the sword itself is a quite thin and light kanmuri otoshi (original, not a nagamaki naoshi), fitted in a saya that is a good six inches longer than it needs to be. Makes sense to carry a light sword in an impressively long saya suggesting the contrary, given that it will not be drawn and prove the saya a bluff. So would it be worth it to try to have this koshirae papered, considering the chance of success versus the potential gain in value, both intellectual and monetary? I have some other blades on which I'm considering submission, so would rather spend the money there if papers for this koshirae are either unlikely or else a "so what?" proposition. TIA for your considered input!

Just surfing by and saw this thread, thought I'd toss in my '44 variant for contrast: The ashi is painted black the same as the saya, but the interesting aspect is that the kabuto-gane, fuchi, kuchi-gane and ishizuke are all thick, plain, polished copper. The seppa are aluminum and the blade is signed Kokura Arsenal only, no smith name. Doesn't seem to make sense, if resources were getting tight, why would the plain, polished fittings be made out of copper instead of iron?

Before you consider the cost of a polish or window, I'd suggest that you get get a good uchiko ball or powder and spend a a number of hours uchikoing the blade. There is no yokote to be seen, so you don't have to worry about erasing that. Here are some links to some of my previous posts on this subject: search.php?keywords=power+uchiko&terms=all&author=Nihonto+Chicken&sc=1&sf=all&sk=t&sd=d&sr=posts&st=0&ch=300&t=0&submit=Search Progress will be slow (which is actually a good thing), but after a few hours whatever activity is present will start to show itself. With enough work, even hada-less mill steel blades with essentially no hataraki will still take on a somewhat pleasing velvet like appearance.

OMG, been there, done that. Unfortunately, I believe that you likely have a significant mental problem and need to avail yourself of professional psychological assistance. If it helps, please let me know. :lol: So have you pondered your addiction to finely made, shiny metallic objects? Hmmmm, well, me neither. More seriously, for any newbies reading this, you don't need to rush out and wildly buy in the fear that stateside Nihonto are drying up. No, it's not the golden years of the fifties, sixties, and maybe seventies when they were a yard sale dime a dozen. Antiques Roadshow, eBay and the like have raised knowledge and interest to the point that some sellers are convinced that their rusty Showa stamped gunto is juyo. But, yes, as time goes by, the better swords are being repatriated to Japan or are disappearing into well heeled non-Japanese collections. However, the economic slowdown (twenty plus years old in the case of Japan) means that there are still decent blades that are still surfacing and are up for grabs, not subject to the big buck Japanese Nihonto collection black hole. Want a decent Japanese Sword? Then the first four hundred dollars you spend should be on books. Slow down, take time, the swords are not disappearing all that fast. If at all possible, go to a regional Nihonto show, rub elbows and ask questions. Really, not all the knowledgeable Nihonto types are crusty ^$$holes. Really. Not all. :D

It appears that your blade has been sand papered as there is no yokote to be seen. Unlike traditional Japanese soft grits, hard grits as used in sand papers tend to burnish the metal as they cut, and this obscures much of the activity that may otherwise be seen. I recommend that you get a good uchiko ball and spend a few hours uchikoing the blade. Here is a search result on some of my previous posts on this subject: search.php?keywords=power+uchiko&terms=all&author=Nihonto+Chicken&sc=1&sf=all&sk=t&sd=d&sr=posts&st=0&ch=300&t=0&submit=Search

Here's a small element from my own experience to throw into the pot, FWIW. Many moons ago I bought a Lohman polishing kit (stand by, don't lose it yet!) that I used up on three rusty Seki and Showa stamped gunto (whew!). One of the most common (and most efficiently destructive) errors made by amateur polishers is to round off the shinogi. I was quite careful to avoid this, particularly with the first stone, it being the fastest cutting and its action perpendicular to the ridge line. Note I was using a rocking motion to preserve the clamshell curve in the ji. I wasn't flat grinding, so it was therefore tougher to keep from over-running the shinogi. With practice I could tell when coming up on the shinogi by both the change of the feel of the grit and the change in the pitch of the grinding sound. I felt I did a credible job on the foundation polish, maybe less well on the finish polish. I determined that I don't want to be a polisher, it's a long, messy and tough job. But I did learn some things such as the item above, also how to keep the stone surface flat while polishing (non-traditional! ).

Thank you for your response, Malcolm. I had hoped that there might be an equivalent to the Knutson's Asian Collection that is still in biz, but failing that I will go ahead and try the general auction houses.

Thanks for the responses. Just another garden variety wak, it appears (though someone popped for a nice gold metal foil habaki for it). Seems to be equivalent to an Ei Roku Kiyomitsu tanto of mine, mediocre (perhaps "bundled sword" type) forging, but with the usual tempering job, i.e., very good with activity galore.

Spring cleaning brought out a Japanese print I acquired years ago that has spent most of its time since in storage. It isn't a Hokusai original, but rather the variant on his print of Rainstorm Beneath The Summit wherein an enterprising soul decided to improve the scene with the addition of trees to the foreground: I understand that, while it's not in the running with an original Hokusai, this print, if a variant original as I believe it is, has some decent value to ukiyo-e collectors. I had thought of having the Knutsons auction it, but never got a round tuit, and now they're out of the auction biz. Might someone suggest another good auction business to raffle this off? I'd prefer not to use Fleabay, but instead go to a concern that specializes in Japanese/Oriental art and has a good rep. I don't know whether it would make the minimum that would interest Sotheby's, Christie's, Bonham & Butterfield, etc. It may as well go to someone who will get a bigger thrill out of it than do I. Thanks for any in-the-know feedback!

Below are some pics of a wak I acquired eons ago that is inscribed Bishu Osafune Sukesada (my thanks to Mark Jones on the Translation Assistance Forum!). If I might I'd like to inquire as to whether the mei is shoshin or gimei and, if the former, which Sukesada in what period. I apologize for the less than stellar photos, note that as my penance I almost went blind with my point and shoot Canon in the full sunlight. The hamon is quite active as I believe shows reasonably well. The boshi, which I failed to capture adequately, is kaen (flame or brush). Despite the activity in the yakiba and the half dozen or so small, loose hada type ware, the blade is almost muji hada, very little shows up. If pushed to guess I'd venture itame. Also any opinions re the quality of the blade (well, as best as can be discerned from the iffy pics)? The hamon is great, the hada is meh, and the little ware put me off (I believe they are as-made and not from over-polishing, the wak is still pretty healthy). Thanks for any and all enlightenment!

Thank you! I may take an overall pic and ask again later re the question of authenticity.

Hi, just was surfing by and came across this thread. I have a WWII gunto with a Yoshi Haru mei. It is very much different than your sword's mei. My blade is hiro suguha nioi deki, no nakago stamps. Mei below: Hard to believe there were two Pacific War Yoshi Haru smiths, or that someone would attempt a gimei of such a minor smith. EDIT: Here's a link to an older Yoshi Haru thread wherein the mei matches mine: viewtopic.php?f=50&t=11109 EDIT #2: Oops, maybe there are two of them: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=5794

Below are some pics of a 21" nagasa wak that I acquired many years ago. I didn't write down the mei translation and have forgotten what it was, and I'm so terribly dull in figuring out kanji that I thought I might presume on your good will to do in seconds what would likely take me frustrating hours. I never considered the wak highly due to the fact that, though in excellent polish, it was sold to me by a knowledgeable owner rather cheaply, and also it has a number of loose hada type ware that I believe to be original and not from overpolishing (see lowest pic for example). OTOH it does have a lot of activity in the temper line, of much finer detail than my poor photos show, and evidently someone thought enough of it to pay for a nice gold foil wrapped habaki. Beyond the mei translation, might anyone venture an opinion as to whether it is shoshin mei or gimei? The latter might explain the low price. Thank you in advance for your help!

<---What he said. At a regional sword show you'll be able to see a number of swords up close, from junk to juyo. It'll be worth the gas, McDonald's and Motel 6 money, even if you don't buy a sword.

Thought that mei looked familiar! Here's some related info from the old Yahoo Nihonto forum: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nihonto/message/34614 I still have my Yoshiharu sword. See mei/date pics in the above referenced forum's Photos section (upper left hand directory), select folder NC1. Mine has muji hada, suguha hamon, essentially zippo hataraki excepting some nice midare utsuri, go figure. The condition of your blade doesn't seem to be all that bad, looks like a lot of white frosting but not a lot of deep, red rust. I suggest you get a decent uchiko ball (such as in a Fred Lohman sword care kit - no relation - available elsewhere as well) and do a Jim Kurrasch Memorial power uchiko job. That is, uchiko the hell out of it (but don't bear down on the shinogi - the ridgelines - you don't want to round these off, do the ji and shinogi ji separately). Enough uchiko action will erase much of the yokote, but it looks pretty well shot anyway, and revealing the boshi - the temperline pattern at the blade tip - is likely more important at this point. Just be sure to re-oil the blade when done with the uchiko. Don't touch the nakago - the tang - with either uchiko or oil, leave it as-is. About ten hours or so of uchiko work will remove most of the white frosting (but not the micro-pits) and bring out the hamon and likely hada as well (if any). Just don't get careless and cut yourself. Here's a link to similar advice I posted earlier: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=7396&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=15 Make sure you use only uchiko powder on the blade, no western style cutting agents (sandpaper, micromesh, Flitz, Simichrome, etc.) which burnish as they cut and therefore hide rather than reveal the sword's activity!!!

Not actually in LA, but reasonably close (given how few nihonto sword shops there are) is Masamune Japanese Sword Shop 25025 Redlands Blvd, Loma Linda, CA 92354 909-799-2088 Mike Christianson, proprietor

Hi! Your blade looks to be Kanbun Shinto in shape, shortened from the original length and new mekugi ana added. The tip has been broken and crudely reshaped, but luckily, IMO, not a lot was broken off and there's a good chance it can be properly reshaped and look decent (but would need to see the boshi to be sure, and it isn't currently visible in your pics). There are polisher's blinds visible at the mune machi, which would indicate the blade had a professional polish and is not a mill steel (non-traditional) sword. There doesn't seem to be any rust to speak of, which is good, nor does the sword appear to be badly sanded, other than at the tip. My recommendation is for you to get a good uchiko ball and do a "power uchiko" job on your blade. That is, perform a few hours of uchiko work on it and see what appears out of the murk (particularly the boshi). Here are some links re "power uchiko": viewtopic.php?f=1&t=7396&p=59299&hilit=power+uchiko#p59299 viewtopic.php?f=3&t=6374&p=50357&hilit=power+uchiko#p50357 Since your kissaki needs reshaping and you want the boshi to appear, you don't have to worry about erasing the yokote with the uchiko, so go whole hog, just don't slip and cut yourself. Good luck on your Easter egg hunt! NC Edit: Upon re-read it appears that you haven't as yet bought this blade. I would recommend a "pass" - if you can't see anything, you can't see anything. My bet is that it's a decent Kanbun Shinto blade, maybe no great shakes, but a good garden variety sample. But I wouldn't bet a lot of money on that. JMHO.

Normally I'd recommend using a lot of uchiko to knock back the rust and bring out some of the activity, but this blade has been so thoroughly raked with large grit sandpaper that I doubt mere uchiko will do much to clarify the situation. I'm guessing it needs a window opened to see what's there. Sigh.

Oops, hoisted by my own device (hyperbole). Actually, though I have in my long appreciation of nihonto, well, let's say, oft times overpaid (or, alternatively, "bought too early"), I actually have only one Bungo now, not too terribly battered and butchered, but typical of my penchant for overpaying for losers. My other Bungo lookalikes and wannabees, generally in lesser condition, I have since raffled off, usually for a well earned educational loss (read, a small gain in knowledge financed by a large debit in dollars). Unfortunately, I don't have a decent digital camera, only a scanner. If and when I may rectify this deficiency, I will post some photos of my Bungo blade (would likely make your heart go pitty-pat if you didn't know it was Bungo). So now that I'm inoculated against and immune (I hope) to the onset of battered and butchered Bungo acquisition, I still have a warm and soft feeling for those who have at times in the past similarly succumbed. Bungo uber alles! (Well, a warm spot for Kanabo as well.) :lol:

Okay, but I'm more into battered and butchered Bungo, of which I seem to have more than my fair share.