John C

There is a large US naval base there. Perhaps the father was in the Navy. John C.

No. I got it for 10 dollars, which is why I decided to buy it. At first I thought the medallion had been altered into a netsuke so I wasn't going to pony up too much. But for 10 bucks I thought it was interesting enough to get. John C.

Conway: Was there anything above the first character? I've seen that kanji paired with field rank. John C.

Just picked this up. A 1934 paper weight commemorating the birthday of Crown Prince Akihito. John C.

Thanks again, Steve. Found a few online now that I know what I'm looking for. John C.

Thanks, Steve. Do you know if it started life that way or has it been altered? The location of the ring makes sense as a way to pick it up. John C.

Agreed. The holes look hand cut through the decoration so probably not original (although I cannot find another example of this particular medallion to compare). And the loop is in a weird spot for a pendant or keychain so I think the most likely usage would be as a NLO. Overall size is 63mm X 71mm. John C.

Thank you very much, Piers-san and Kaito-san. This gives me some great info to research. John C.

Thank you, Piers. Here is the back side showing a loop that would have allowed it to be used as a NLO. John C.

John: In general, the Edo period was relatively peaceful. Samurai were still working for daimyo, however as peace keepers, police (see info on sodegarami), firemen, guards, etc. Swords became less for battle and more for status, tradition, and peace keeping. This means hamon became more flamboyant and kashirae became a form of an expression of wealth and status. In short, a sword (assuming katana here) from that time period would have been carried by samurai, though would not have likely seen any battle. John C.

Hello: I can read May 30-31, 1934. But the only thing that comes up on that date is a day of mourning for Admiral Togo Heihachiro. Not sure that's what it is. Could this have been for Crown Prince Akihito's Birthday???? Looks like a medallion that someone turned into a tsuba-like netsuke-like-object. Thank you for taking a look. I appreciate your help. John C.

No specific example. The hole in the middle reminds me of some netsuke attachments. In addition, the whole form reminds me of a type of concho we use in leather working. John C.

Roland: The small knife is a kozuka (short knife handle). The blade by itself is a kogatana (small knife). Both appear to be signed and decent quality. Not sure in this case, however many of these have the potential to be worth more than the sword so treat it kindly as well. These small knives are sometimes made by known swordsmiths and many are made by lesser smiths who put an "homage" signature on them. Overall, a very nice piece of history. John C.

Brings back memories - all of my grand-uncles were boilermakers. Endless stories...most of which are R rated. John C.

Did some additional research. Looks as if mine is a copy. Note the cartouche is different on the real example (square) and the chevron stroke on the top is separate rather than solid. I wouldn't say fake since the potter didn't try to replicate his mark exactly. Still looks nice, though and I didn't pay much for it. John C.