John C

The only way to know for sure is to send the sword to shinsa. If it gets papered, then you can be confident. John C.

Just a general note about these. They were so popular with G.I.s during the war that they were being faked and sold during the war. It got so bad that Stars and Stripes had a cartoon about the practice. John C.

Just as a point of interest on the marks, the two seen above on 11157 (possibly Koide) start arond 9536 and are the only ones seen until around 12000 or 13000 when the marks changed location to the guard. Prior to that, there were 6 or 7 different marks used in several different configurations. We now have 49 on file. John C.

Thanks, Sam. That mark is what I would expect but wanted to be sure. John C.

Sam: Thanks for the pics! I'm not on FB (i.e., no access), are there any pics of the other side of the blade with the marks? John C.

James: In addition to the signature, I would look at the kikumon (the chrysanthemum). When Mike posted the sword, I looked at the kiku briefly and, in my opinion, does not look anything like a Kinmichi kiku. But fake signatures are not a deal breaker. If you like the sword, enjoy the blade and disregard the signature. John C.

Amy: Not sure about the tip. Is it damaged? Would affect any sale price. John C.

Time for another sword crossword! Thanks to those who did the easier one posted on Izakaya. This one focuses on Nihonto and is a bit more challenging. Indeed, I suspect no one can complete the whole puzzle without looking up at least one of the answers (the gauntlet has been thrown). I'm also including a screenshot version for those who are leary of downloading stuff. Enjoy!!! John C. Sword Crossword_3_A.docx

Mike: The tsuba should be sandwiched between seppa (round washers), which you seem to be missing. This may be causing everything not to line up correctly. John C.

There is one of just the saddle that I didn't take. But I do have a few others. Note the sword rig. John C.

@xiayang Sorry, Peter. I was seeing this 参 on the date thinking it was a 3. John C.

Hello: I picked up a Japanese cavalry manual from 1912 and thought I would share some pics for those interested. The first is a layout of the cavalry soldier's kit (note the type 32 on the table). The second is one of the pics on riding position. I found it interesting that the artist took some artistic license (licence in UK and Oz) with the horse's eyes. John C.

Peter: I can get you started with the date. Looks like an auspicious day in March, Showa 13. John C.

Hrushev: If the blade is hand forged, it's a nice Chinese made blade. It just isn't a Japanese katana. John C.

It's not the ww2 smith, if that's what you are asking. I believe this blade is older. John C.