shan

Hi Steve, There is always a risk when getting a sword polished.more so with some than others. I would have gone to Les stewart IMHO. Tony Norman is the other good toshogi but he is semi retired and is very choosy about his commisions.(so i am told). The thickening at the Kissaki is remeniscant of the Tanto shape Osoraku zukuri: æらãé€ ã‚Š a form in which the yokote is near or at about the middle of the blade. Osore æã‚Œ means fear or dread, and this is an imposing shape. see attached Tanto of mine,that is with Les Stewart,he will restore the Yokote.This design was a yoroi doshi. Masayuki AKA Kiyomaro liked this style of Tanto and his version was much admired.Mine is like his but i think his work is vastly superior to my blade. Yours if it thickens at the tip like mine( motokasane 6mm -sakikasane 9.5mm)is most likely the same idea on a longer blade,what you will then have is a slashing and armour piercing blade. can`t see all of your blade though so its a "stab in the dark" (excuse the pun) regards shan

Hi Jean, I have asked for help on this one before and got 0 replies from 270 viewings of the post. I am unsure that it is either a very clean looking Nekago and is later 1700`s period or it is the later Kanetsune from 1865-8 that later changed his name to Munetsune. Its a big guess But i am sure this is not any of the better known smiths of same name from the 1600`s to 1700`s or earlier unless its an obscure smith of the same name. I had a look in the connoisseurs book of Japanese swords but cannot find anything that sugests the mino schools Yasureme. The sugata however seems consistent with the proposed age of the blade.(1860`s) I really don`t want to offer it up for shinsa if there is a doubt that the nthk team would consider this later kanetsune and just Gimei it based on the 1500`s 1600`s or 1700`s mei examples which are clearly different. Can you offer any reason why it might not be be a genuine mei? It is boldly carved and shows familiarity with the kanji. I have another offering for shinsa if this is in doubt and will pull it out for that other blade. This is a more realistic appearence of the nekago as the flash didn`t fire on the image and make it shiny. regards shan

Hi Grey, How about a badly written Kanenori? Thats as close as i gan get to it. I`v been through all the Kane ???? that i know and thats or Johns option. sorry shan

Hi Guys, All fair comments and taken as they are meant and instructional. Its an early period in my tosogu experience so bear with me,I promise it will not get worse (too often) and the quality should get better.kindest regards shan

HI guys, Thank you all for your as usual refrained approach to remonstration. Don’t get too hung up on the posted tsuba,as I said ,I know it was poor but I thought perhaps to run it by you in case I had missed something subtle. I know that what I am offering up in general is fairly poor stuff compared to your items but to me some of it is nice. I am not a true Tosogu collector in that I am only after improving the fittings on my extant sword mounts. Essentially, I would love to have a quality Kamakura tsuba on a Kamakura blade, a quality early Edo tsuba on an early Edo blade. What I don’t want is a £2000 tsuba on a £1000 blade. I am trying to get 4-5 good sets of mounts for 4-5 good swords. Now, we all know that most swords & fittings are a mish mash made up for tourists to buy or WWII trophies and a lot of items we have, have had the good parts removed and replaced with less than average fittings. I see and hear of collectors doing it all the time when a sword gets moved on,("its an average sword but,i`ll remove those fantastic menuki and the nice tsuba and put in these poorly made ones before I sell it on") Its the same with everything else. So an Ikkanshi Tadatsuna could quite possibly be in some very nasty mounts with nasty fittings. My objective (if i have one) would be to buy a good sword in fairly good saya and a usable tsuka.then the rest is for me to find to make it what I want it to be. I can and have wrapped many of my own tsuka and though I say it myself I think they are good so I have no problems adapting tsuka to suit my needs. Perhaps this is the wrong approach and I hate to have to defend myself but i feel you all misjudge my intentions slightly. I know when an item is rubbish; I have, I believe, quite good instincts. Maybe not to the degree that hardened Tosogu collectors like yourselves might have but nonetheless useful. Now the tsuba that started all this, was part of a package deal that also supplied 2 tsuka, a tanto one with nice enough silver inlaid iron mounts and a (nasty) wakizashi one which was in black lacquered mounts and may be Satsuma rebellion and a nice patterned lacquer saya will little or no damages to speak of. The tsuka are handy to have and can be adapted to fit any blade I might buy.The saya, well I have many unmounted blades so always need them. OK the tsuba was a nasty piece and I should not have offered it up to you venerable gentlemen, but I was not SURE I had not missed something, so offer it I did. Maybe the deal was not all that great but I was happy enough with it. The small mounted boys wakizashi I posted a short while ago cost me £100.It was a “sleeper†I think that’s a bargain but then that’s because I like it. The tsuba that I last posted title “new acquisition for opinions please†is I think quite a nice Shoami tsuba for £55.Again that is now on mounts of a blade. I won’t go on and on about what I have that I like, I know its poorer quality than you are all used to. I know it is I who have asked you for help,so I thank you all for your views and opinions. perhaps i will be a little more selective about my requests in the future. Kindest Regards Shan

Hi Jon, Papered...bah ....wheres the fun in that? How would i torment you all with my crap if i knew what it was? Honestly though,I am sorry to say that i am happy to start with the rubbish and work my way up. To go and just buy papered items would be rather uninteresting to me ,yes i might have an envyable collection but i would have paid top dollar for it.Is nihonto an investment....I think its an obsession for sure, but unless you buy a good valuable thing cheap you will never get your money back when its time to move it on. I think that there may still be something out there that "slipped through the net",so to speak.I`m going to "land that one"! Did i mention optimistic? AKA regards Shan

Ford, There`s no need to "beat around the bush" just tell it like it is I thought it a bit poor but i thought i would just see for sure.(ever the optimist) Don`t panic i did not really intend to keep it,i don`t like the patina and feel of it. It was a gamble for £10 and thats probably £10 down the drain but.....whatever. My last Tsuba posting was £50 ish ($70 or so) Some you win...... I think my instincts will help me out when in doubt. many thanks for the redirection. regards shan

Hi all I was wondering if i could get some assistance and possibly get to the bottom of a conundrum. I have this Blade that has a very poor conditioned Nakago that seems to get different results when translating it. Some of the characters are very worn so it is difficult to read but some of it can be surmised from known examples of mei groupings or characters shapes. This is what i read Soshu Kamakura ju Tosaburo Yukimitsu. Now for the Date. I read this as Gentoku, Ni gatsu, Jyu go hi -1329 Feb 15th day?( I suppose it could also read Gentoku ichi,ichi Gatsu, jyu go hi.)? And the conundrum:The strange thing about the date is that the last 3 kanji are by a different hand,a lighter touch and delicate style and way below the other Kanji,I believe the last 3 Kanji could also read "soshu" but i am probably wrong.There is a filled mekugi ana to the left of the "HI" Kanji,not easy to see but definatly there if you turn to a light source.(See 3rd Bottom image) I am hoping that lots of heads are better than one. I can supply huge images via email if required,so that you can magnify the nekago very large to assist. regards Shan

Hi Brian, I had a look with the eyepeice and i cannot see those telltale ridges. I have been unfortunate in that i have "distance bought" 2 Tsuba now that i thought were cast as soon as i got them. THis one has rusted badly historically, then been cleaned and then aged again and been "polished"?. I`m 95% Its good, but i could still be wrong. What style and school could it be? regards shan

I have now managed to sneak in two slots at the Shinsa this november. I will be submitting a Mumei Wakizashi and the Kanetsune Tanto. My fingers are crossed that the Kanetsune is not Gimei. regards shan

Yep,guess theres no getting rid of me. Another aquisition that might be ok. I had this on a zero description and a very poor image.But i liked its shape. It looks old to me and has had a hard life. I cannot see any Geese ,ducks or things but perhaps you can and you may be able to tell me what school and period. Its another Keeper as i like the old iron ones more than the fancy stuff. I made a lightbox and tried to improve my photography of these items but i appear to have made it llook plastic or painted which it is not as far as i can see. It has Bones and folds and other attributes that seem to be desirable. Regards as always..... hopefully. shan

Hi Brian ,Ford,Thanks for the explaination,you are both probably right :D . I will look further into it regards shan

Hi Brian, This one is possibly a "keeper" its a nice theme although very common and is very well done. I would still like to find out about it. I honestly can`t understand why someone would say gimei without a mei comparison or at least knowing who the artist was,but there you go,thats just me. I wonder if its a saying rather than a mei? His thoughts were "the mei looks very badly cut almost an after thought,............remember the mei on fittings are more faked then the mei on swords" He may be quite right on the latter, but i am not sure of the former statement,that is why i need to know.Is the mei wrong in someway? Its an item i would not sell until i knew about it. I have a Kozuka handle and Kiyonaga signed and tempered blade for the set,........now for the menuki which at the moment are golden shi shi. I will take an image of them for you on the forum as they ARE well done ,are gold over copper and might be identifiable. I have just put a reasonable F-C on ebay with Ikoma family mon amongst flowers (they may be the second mon) even have the original shitodome`s.

I showed a short while ago a fuchi Kashira with dragons on that was signed Ichi Ryu Dairi. Can anyone tell me where i can get a sample of the artists Mei and further information and the craftsman? I have been told the Mei is good and also its gimei. without comparison,i don`t know. I would be really grateful if i could get to the bottom of this conundrum. hopeful regards shan

Thankyou Koichi ,i am very grateful. kindest regards Shan

Hello, could anyone help me with this mei and possibly anything about the maker? Many thanks shan

Ah i understand. Thanks for that Bungo regards Shan

Ah i see,sorry Pete, I thought that Katchushi was a school as well as a type. I probably need to study this a considerable amount more. regards shan

Hi Pete, Not sure where the Tosho/Katchushi was mentioned,Well i can`t find a reference to it in the post ( but i am stupid ,its probably right in front of me). All are saying Shoami or Ko shoami. which looks about right to me.I have Googled it and find some very similar from around the muromachi period. the Kogai theory is along the same lines as i was thinking. Many thanks for your opinion regards shan

Hi Brian, You may be right and i agree we will never know. I guess that i may be getting hung up on a mute point. Its a nice item and I would never have seen the duck and or goose without you and your forums help. I now realize that you need to look deeper sometimes to see the subject matter. One of the Shoami branches is the general consensus then? It has a nice feel to it and someone took care to make it well. Its a "Keeper" in my books because of that. Is it an armourers tsuba or a tsuba makers tsuba? Any Idea of its age? or is that hard to judge? many thanks shan

I wish you all the best of luck with your items. I will be at the next one in a few years time and hopefully more knowledgable. I hope you all keep the forum updated as to what did (and what didn`t) get papered with some images for us all to see. Go on show off and hotdog it a little,you know you want to. regards shan

Thank you all for your opinions so far they are all very useful. Please permit me one more concession and have a look at the way in which both of these Hitsu ana are worked. One is neat and well worked and the other is half hazard and uneven. This is not an anomaly to me; this is different workmanship or more likely a later reworking of the hitsu ana to accommodate something that did not fit the original Ana. My guess is it was enlarged for a wari Kogai or something similar. Forgive me my inexperience. I may be “way off base†on this but its just not the same neat work. Regards shan

Hi Brian, Yes, now you mention it i can see a goose one one side ,Very observant If you turn the tsuba 90 degrees it could be a landscape as rocks were defined as having holes on there centres in oriental images.(Ming Porcelain etc..) and the other things styalised plant matter? (get ready for the paint/Ink blot Jokes....Its a bird its a plane....Its tsubaman :lol: ) The other Ana looks like it has been modified or opened out a bit (and not particularily well done either)It wasnt a goose but it may have been another animal (was there a fable about a boar and a goose?) This is why i said a later addition because of the reworkings at this ana. I did not think that the ana could also be designed to be iregular as well.I always look at the ana as being standard Kogai or kozuka slots (like most tsuba) I thought this was a tsuba without Ana for the 2 utility items. Thanks Brian regards Shan

Hello again, Without potentially annoying anyone any further than i already have.I am sorry to have to ask but you are the experts in this field. I bought this because i thought it had some merit as an earlier Tsuba. The Kozuka Ana has been cut later as i do not believe that the tsuba had any intention of originally being mounted with Kozuka or Kogai. Would this then predate the use of those items? My guess is its akasaku sukashi 17th century but this is based on comparisons to Sotheby`s catologue sales items. Any opinions as to right or wrong and why would be very much appreciated. Many thanks shan

I am with Jacques on this one, its sugata is not right and there is nothing there to indicate Heian period,no gracefulness,fumbari .....Nothing. I very much doubt that the blade would take another polish and not get worse in that area and it would worry me immensly with openings like that for that sum.I saw it and dismissed it in the first 20 seconds. The seller is optimistic about date and value as he is in most of the things he is saying and selling IMHO.This is just a gut feeling mind you as i know little or nothing about this sort of thing. I think Jacques has a heian period blade or two so i would trust his opinion. Kindest regards shan.