mdiddy

Like this?

Ron, I agree and think this sword is well older than Shinshinto. I noticed on the picture of the maru mune that the nakago looks noticeably thicker than the mune at the mune machi so maybe this sword has seen a few polishes in its past. Matt

This sounds a bit anecdotal. Can you provide some evidence or pictures to further describe? Thanks! Matt

From the 1st couple of pics, my opinion is that the anomaly is yubashiri. Seeing the latest pics do not change that opinion. Here is a great older thread on differences between ji nie, tobiyaki, and yubashiri: http://www.nihontomessageboard.com/nmb/ ... 4&start=30. Once you get past the BS, pg. 3 is best with Guido's definitions and Reinhard's example of Soshu HIROMITSU. Do any features from their examples align with what you are seeing? Seeing the updated photos of hada makes me want to double down on my Shitahara kantei. And I will pretend for now to not have noticed the maru mune.

How about Sue-Koto Shitahara school? I was also thinking Uda or Mokusa Hoju, but the mokume is a bit loose. Moreover, the maru mune is very perplexing and monkeywrenching my kantei. If this is ubu, then I suppose the extra mekugi-ana are for style points? Cautiously judging from the pictures, the bottom mekugi-ana looks a good bit older than the others. I could understand its placement for tachi mounts but this does not strike me as a sword that was tachi mounted. If the bottom mekugi-ana is not for show, and not for tachi mounts, then how would this be ubu? Is there evidence of machi okuri? Deducing the original length would go a long way to resolving era and maybe help put the maru mune in context.

I have often found Nagamitsu Bizen-den to be of pretty high quality and on par with some ShinShinTo I have had. Very consistent nioi-guchi, ashi, and usually choji gunome based on suguha. Although, I have never seen a Nagamitsu with smaller, more-controlled clusters of choji or overlapping choji.

It's real, WWII-era Shin Gunto. Looks to have a saya with Type 3 and Type 98 fittings, so maybe it dates to 1943-1944. Here are two sites for your research: http://home.earthlink.net/~steinrl/military.htm and http://www.h4.dion.ne.jp/~t-ohmura/gunto_002.htm.

Would anyone know how long Type 98 gunto were continued to be fitted after the introduction of the Type 3? Any research in this space? I have heard that officers continued to prefer the Type 98 mounts after the Type 3 was introduced but have seen no conclusive evidence on the subject. I have also seen an abundance of 1943-dated Showato in Type 98 mounts, a handful (maybe) of 1944-dated Showato in Type 98 mounts, and no 1945-dated Showato in type 98 mounts. I am curious as I have recently had an early Nagamitsu that was in Type 98 gunto mounts. However, the mounts featured Kai Gunto fittings on the saya and black same on the tsuka. My hypothesis was that since the surface Naval fleet was mostly destroyed by late 1943 and the Type 3 was being introduced that surplus Naval parts may have made up for a scarcity of Type 98 parts as the Type 98 was phased out for the Type 3. Anyone have any insight?

Ron, I agree with choji midare but see a touch of both kani-no-hasami (crab-claw) and uma-no-ha (horsetooth). To me the uma-no-ha looks a little more exagerated than the kani-no-hasami. Just my opinion. Here is a previous post where a somewhat similar Bizen-inspired hamon was discussed: http://www.nihontomessageboard.com/nmb/ ... f=1&t=7513. What is the hada like? Matt

Thanks Jacques, Adam, and Jean for keeping the thread going. Here is a Juyo Shikkake, once belonging to Mori Daimyo, signed Norinaga from AOI Art: http://www.aoi-art.com/sword/sale/11295.html Has anyone ever seen bo-hi on Shikkake school work? For Yamato, I have only seen bo-hi on Taima (pictures only) and the few Senjuin I have examined. Are there any rules to bo-hi and the Yamato schools? I would be curious to find out. Matt

Hello, Thanks for sharing. You are correct it is a Kyu Gunto and an officers grade. Based on the full decoration of the backstrap, it was likely a Field Officer/Colonels. Sometimes there is a silver family mon in the center of the backstrap, but not always. For this sword, the design at the bottom of the back-strap is more interesting. There is a family mon of that design, however that location on the backstrap is sometimes where other symbols were put indicating different branches of service (i.e. Civil Police). For the blade - what is the length? From the last picture it looks to be a wakizashi so likely Shinto ca. 1600-1700. Would you be willing to remove the handle so we can see the tang? That would help a lot in understanding the blade. As far as the condition, it is impossible to tell from a few pictures, but the wear does look cosmetic. Do you see any blisters or opening in the steel? Finally, I've re-posted one of your pictures. If you care about maintaining the condition of the blade, it is highly advisable that you not hold it with your bare hand or fingers. The oil from your fingers will cause additional rust. See here for proper handling/care techniques: http://www.jssus.org/articles/7.html. Also, you do not want to cut your hand right? :D Hope that helps and look forward to more pictures of the tang. Matt

Micha, Thanks for sharing. I enjoyed these pics, especially as yours is ubu. I've seen one other Ko-Senjuin piece - a mumei, o-suriage katana. It had Tokubetsu Hozon papers to Ko-Senjuin. It also had hada much like yours. Best, Matt

Paul - thanks for sharing, is yours the same as from Andy's site? Very nice. I expect mine is later, maybe mid-late Nambokucho. The hada is visibly nagare. Jean - thanks for the photo tip. I will try that. Ernst - I'll see if I can get some overall pictures. Nakago is o-suriage, mumei. Any other Shikkake examples from the Messageboard?

Here is the kissaki.

Hello, I was trying to get pictures of a ko-gunome hamon and ended up with some better pictures of Shikkake hada. Here are some pictures of Shikkake hada I thought I would share. Masame transitioning to mokume in the ji. If you look closely at the kissaki you can see hakikake and old man's beard. Matt

Very interesting. What does the sayagaki say? Any reference to the school or swordsmith? According to other's research, the Shin Gunto is a Sukesada dated 1509. In some of the period photos from the exhibit you can see the Shin Gunto on a katanakake behind a crowd gathered over a wounded Tojo. However, I don't think the Shirasaya can be seen in those photos. Begs the question a little.

Some pictures of the blade

Hello, I recently got a chance to visit the MacArthur Memorial in Virginia Beach. They have a number of items that MacArthur brought back from Japan, including two of Hideki Tojo's katana and another katana purported to have belonged to Tomoyuki Yamashita. Prior research by others (http://home.earthlink.net/~steinrl/tojo.htm) suggests the katana in Shin Gunto mounts is signed Sukesada and dated 1509, and that the katana in Shirasaya is likely Yamato. I could not find any information on the sayagaki on the shirasaya which I hope would give specifics on the Yamato katana. Would someone be willing to translate the sayagaki? I have also posted some pictures of this sword. There was nice sunagashi in the hamon. Overall though, all three blades were unfortunately showing some rust, grime, and aging. If anyone is interested I have many more pictures of the Sukesada and Yamashita's katana, which looked to me to have some sudare-ba in the hamon. Thanks for the help! Matt

I agree with Fujiwara Kanenaga: http://home.earthlink.net/~ttstein/kanenag3.jpg WWII era blade in late WWII Japanese naval mounts with a traditionally designed tsuba. Your uncle's uncle is best bet for how it ended up in the garage.

Tom, Thanks for the prompt attention. I received the reservation and have what I need. Looking forward to the Shinsa. Matt

Tom, I have submitted for Shinsa slots in Tampa and see that my check cashed for these slots. However, I have not received any additional follow-ups for the Shinsa - no reservations, tickets, correspondence, etc. In the past I have received these. I'm also not sure when my Shinsa slots are as I have not heard back. Should I be planning to just show up and check in with the Shinsa when I get there? Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! Matt

Signed Toki Kanemasa. Seki-produced Showato in Shin Gunto mounts.

I have held and owned several Nagamitsu, some of which had been polished, and have not noticed a difference in quality based on length of signature. From an artistic standpoint, they were all of seemingly good quality with consistent hamon (usually some gunome variant) and hataraki in both ji and hamon. From an iai practitioner's standpoint, I would be curious if they differ in quality as I have noticed differences in the shape and curvature, with many being what I would call 'stout' (shorter and thicker). I have always heard they performed well in cutting and I think the 'world-record' tameshigiri was performed with a Nagamitsu. One difference I have noticed though is that earlier Nagamitsu seem to be of lower quality as compared to later Nagamitsu. Most Nagamitsu I have held were not dated, but I implied some crude dating based on the mounts, earlier being mounted in Type 98 mounts and later in Type 3 mounts (most Nagamitsu are seen in Type 3 mounts). There are similarities, but the earlier Nagamitsu seem more crude, lack hataraki, and had more basic hamon. In my opinion, every Nagamitsu I have held was of higher quality than Seki Showa-to, but no Nagamitsu was of higher quality than examples I have held by Seki Kanehide or Seki Kanenori. The examples I have held by those two smiths all displayed more consistent hamon and more varied hataraki. Keep in mind though that I am just a lay collector and not an Iai practitioner or on a Shinsa panel. Finally, I agree with Chris that Nagamitsu was probably not a lone smith cranking these out and had some kind of operation. If he had an operation then many could be dai mei which could explain the varying signatures but consistent quality. My experience is based on handling maybe 50 Nagamitsu which could be a limited set so please take that into consideration.

I am pretty sure that is Sgt. Coldy Bimore and he is holding the Honjo Masamune! Richard Fuller notes in Japanese Military and Civil Swords and Dirks that this sergeant did not bring back any swords himself. I would suggest reaching out to Mr. Fuller and seeing if he would know this sergeant's name as well as his story. I for one would be interested in hearing it.

FWIW - I would value an amateur polish (or no polish) over that of a professional polish where the intent was to harm the sword for whatever reason (repurchase by the togishi, etc). I realize this subject is not often discussed and the situation is the exception, not the norm, but it does occur given the value of these items. I think my point here is that I value trusting the togishi first over any advertisements, accolades of service, or 'professional'-ism. Getting to know a togishi at a personal level first before imparting to them, or middle-men, $4k worth of work and a valued item seems prudent in my mind. Just my $.02 (1.5 Yen) EDIT - just read Clive's post and I think he sums it up best.