Bazza

Decades ago I heard that Paris had many tsuba used as keyhole escutcheons, so perhaps it is a common understanding there "in the trade". You are lucky yours doesn't have the nail holes where it might have been attached to a door... BaZZa.

Darn good find at a flea market. I hope it was priced accordingly??? I would give this one house room. Lovely patina and condition. Congratulations. BaZZa.

Francois, Is this on/from a Shinguntou tsuka??? BaZZa.

Hi Bob, Just remembered I have a set of three fuchi by Yasuchika boxed with a Torigoe hakogaki. I bought these from Richard Turner quite some years ago. Here is the document I made describing the set. I've put the hakogaki photo separately for those who don't want to read the article. BaZZa. Three Yasuchika fuchigashira.doc

Rotated and tidied up. This looks more Chinese than Japanese??? BaZZa.

GOOD GRAVY!!! That's more mint than the green plant in my garden!!! WOW. BaZZa.

> Not to imply you can't read a tape measure but in the photo your tanto appears longer than 22cm (8.66"), guess it is the photo. That's exactly the impression I got Ed. I guess its a matter of proportion. In the photo David's tanto looked long and skinny to my eye. > ... but I have seen several which were considerably longer and much too thick to be Sunnobi Tanto. I'm reminded now of such a tanto I saw decades ago, long and very thick. It was a Mino blade and I cannot now recall the smith. Yes, it was BIG... Good to hear the discussion and verifying the the blade as a yoroi doshi. BaZZa.

Far too long to be an armour piercer. More like a sunnobi tanto. The cobwebs in my brain are rustling and seem to be saying Koto... BaZZa.

Veeeeery interesting... Danke. BaZZa.

tbonesullivan wrote: > I wish sword smiths (or their assistants) had better handwriting. Well, in my very limited knowledge of kanji writing styles I would say this a VERY elegant signature, possibly indicating a gendaitou rather than a run-of-the-mill guntou. It takes a highly educated and experienced person to read this style of kanji. Luckily we are blessed with Morita san to help us with these more difficult kanji. Might we see pictures of the whole sword, complete tang both sides?? BaZZa.

ALL - I AM SO TERRIBLY EMBARRASSED Referring to this thread: http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/29457-question-re-hzen-tadayoshi-gendaitoshinsakuto/ The sword in question is actually signed HIZEN KUNI JU NIN YOSHITADA SAKU KORE A good friend actually has an early Shinto Hizen Yoshitada and when first viewing his sword I initially read it as TADAYOSHI, so conditioned am I (WE??) to read these two kanji as TADAYOSHI. So, my humblest apologies for the red herring. My question is answered, thank you all for those enduring the thread. C'mon now, only one person PMd me about the error - how many really noticed it??? Hmmmm??? Best regards, BaZZa.

John, thanks, but I'm very sure this is a recently made blade. The hamon is odd with shadowy rises in gonome style looking like faint smoke and there is no hada to be seen at all. I'm sure the lacking in hada is mainly due to a low level polish. It isn't an "oily" because there is nice looking sunagashi in parts of the hamon. And the brightness and yasurime of the tang is like no Shinshinto sword I have ever seen Chris, thanks for your comment. This could be a re-mounted RJT, but I'm hanging my hat on a more recent production. By the way, I've found a useful technique is to plug the kanji into google and trawl through the Japanese websites. Try it: 肥前國住人忠吉作之 There is a very nice naginata there and on one of the links I found this pertinent remark: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From Aoi Art: Hizen Kuni Jyunin Tadayoshi Saku is 1st generation Tadayoshi and welcomed by sword expert which is old feeling sword like Shizu. You must understand Hizen Kuni Jyunin Tadayoshi Saku and without Saku Hizen Kuni Jyunin Tadayoshi signature. If the saku added the signature is first generation but if the saku is none, the blade is Tosa Kami Tadayoshi not first generation. This is very important. Therefor this sword is first generation Tadayoshi. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So it seems to me the sword I have in question is trying to be a Shodai Tadayoshi - a "homage", or to attract the unwary?? BaZZa. EDIT: Placing the "kore" inside the bottom of the SAKU instead of underneath it seems to be a "pointer" to a particular smith???

I've been asked for an opinion on a katana in modern mounts - nicely lacquered ishime saya, jabaramaki tsukamaki and a plain but nice tsuba. What is puzzling me is the tachi mei: HIZEN KUNI JU NIN TADAYOSHI SAKU KORE The mei is very elegantly inscribed. In an attempt to identify the smith I've searched the internet and cannot come up with a matching mei. Can anyone throw any light on it? There is no date on the other side. The nakago is quite clean and I'm fairly sure this has been made in the last few years and is not a WW2 re-mount. Thanks, BaZZa.

The last two pictures say it all - how to send a young man blind compared to the traditional explanation!! Stunning achievement. BaZZa.

IMHO the "drops" on the tsuba are silver, not sawari. For an extensive study and reading on the subject of sawari put the word into the SEARCH field when in the View New Content window. The most pertinent reading is surely this link http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/6505-a-sawari-zogan-tsuba/. Post #14 is from Ford Hallam and I've copied his salient point below: ============================================================ I would also point out, as does Marc, that sawari/sahari is always finished flush with the steel ground into which it is fused. On your example the clouds are clearly carved in relief and stand proud of the surrounding ground. It may help to consider that the alloy is typically applied in a manner similar to the process employed in champlevé enamelling. The alloy is filled up to produce a fine powder which is then packed into the prepared cavity ( when I experimented with this process years ago I added a little borax powder to the metal) this is then brought up to melting temperature. Once cooled the excess metal is ground off leaving the alloy flush with the surrounding steel surface. The most characteristic feature of sawari inlay is the appearance of bubbles and sunken areas of roughened metal. This has often, inaccurately been described as being some sort metal rot or corrosion. It is simply the result of pockets of air being trapped in the metal powder when it was melted and in some areas the alloy not being sufficient to fill the cavities. These apparent imperfections were seemingly appreciated in their own right. ============================================================ BaZZa.

I get mine from my wife's Sunday roast lamb leg!!!! Works a treat... BaZZa.

Well, Luis, sorry to see you go, but it is IMHO your loss. This thread should stay because it is an important contribution to knowledge no matter what you may think. So, if you no longer intend to engage in message boards in general, may I ask what is your strategy to continue on in study and acquiring Nihonto knowledge?? Don't tell me, you collect matchbox labels and stamps as well???!!! BaZZa.

Well, I noticed it right up front, but let it go to the cognoscenti to point it out. In this world of fakers who have no heart it behoves us all to be alert, to learn more and to be BE HUMBLE - yet persist with The Way. There is so much original, very good art "out there" that we, the True believers, need to have strong shoulders. We must be eternally grateful for the likes of Ford Hallam to help us navigate this slippery mountain path. BaZZa.

Just into this thread. Robin, I agree with the people who are suggesting you do not clean this in any way at all and Ford's comment on this is pertinent. Save it all until Ford can get to it - after the restorations I have just sent him via a friend!!!! I like your tsuba very much and the signature style IMHO adds much to the piece. Best regards, BaZZa.

Thanks Guido - it was a shot off the top of my head, for which I should be shot for not checking the kanji first. What we might call a BANG BANG lesson, eh? BaZZa.

Kaga castle??? Is there more to the story??? A connection to the Kaga Daimyo, perhaps?? BaZZa.

I suggest lacquered paper. I have one, I think. I'll try a photograph and put it up. BaZZa

Dear Krystian, I have put this tsuba up before quite some time ago, but put it here for you and newer members to show that in some sanmai tsuba rivets are put through the seppa dai. BaZZa.

I clicked and it was quite OK... BaZZa.

John, they are firmly attached. I once, long ago, had another handachi I should have kept (lament, tear vase) where the ashi away from the tsuba (i.e., the 2nd one down the scabbard) was moveable and slid up and down... BaZZa.