Conway

Hello Richard, You posted your pictures in the “About Me” tab in your portfolio. The sword your grandfather brought home is an Army Type 98 Officer’s sword. It’s dated Showa 17 or 1942. Full length pictures of both sides of the tang (nakago) may help for a better assessment. It looks like your pictures cut off some characters.

That is my understanding as well. The Japanese dirks are based on European pattern dirks, which customarily have double-edged blades. I think it’s more an association with the style of fittings than the type of blade. Ohmura’s site uses the term “Tanken” 短剣. I’m not an etymologist, but I’m sure it was intentional to reference double-edged blades here.

Jeff, In the second photo (3 of7), it looks like the blade is threaded into the pommel of the handle. Usually this would indicate a non-traditionally made blade, as is most common in these police swords.

Thanks for the tip. I just need to pop the dent out enough for the blade to sheath more easily.

So those little inserts are plastic and they have enough strength to punch out the dents in the saya without breaking? I have a saya with some damage caused by the U.S. postal service and I was thinking of making something similar. I wasn’t sure it would be strong enough to get the job done.

Did you happen to take any photos of the nakago when all the fittings are removed? Those of us who would never dare to disassemble a Type 95 for fear of it not going back together the same, like to see these types of pictures. It should have a 東 “To” stamp.

You did a great job straightening out the blade and saya, Nazar. It will display nicely with the rest of your collection on those sweet custom racks you shared in the Izakaya!

Hey Chris, Could you post more close ups of the blade? I don’t see signs of acid etching from the pics posted.

Making sense of all these numbers sure does make your head spin! But I don’t think we should assume issuance on a 1:1 ratio regardless of the rank approved to carry them. Also I re-read the posts above, and I assume when Fuller says most officers had more than one sword he is implying they had one for dress (ex. Type 19) and one for the field… Back to the Type 95s - My cataloguing hasn’t gone as in-depth as Sam’s, but I think those are good estimates on total production.

They made a few 100k Type 32 as well. And obviously not all NCOs were issued swords too depending on their military roles. And then account for additional unknown numbers of enlisted and NCOs who probably had personally-procured swords. I don’t think Sam’s estimates of Type 95 production need to line up with estimated NCO billets.

I recorded a nice condition early-ish Suya (SN#29474)sold by smallsword on eBay for $1995 in April. But the one Bruce posted above currently at $1100 seems excessive given the black paint on the tsuka and saya. Sometimes I wonder what percentage of these NCOs end up in China. Collectors there have an affinity for swords used during the Japan’s war with China (Type 32, Type 95, Mantetsu). Given supply is probably low in China, I’m sure people selling to clients in China can charge a significant mark up. I’ve met a few people from China at shows in the U.S. who were buying to send the swords back to China. For example, maybe $1900 for a nice aluminum handle isn’t too much if they can sell for $3,000.

“Almost always” being the key words. I believe Hamfish sold a star-stamped Kaneshige on NMB a few years ago in Type 3 koshirae with a steel saya. Sometimes, the Type 3 lacquered saya and tsuka ito can be found on late war showato, such as the example below: But I do agree the Type 3 is the model where the fittings most closely correspond to blade quality.

Agree with the above comments on writing/numbers on habaki being a hallmark of Chinese fakes. Additionally, the habaki says Manchurian cavalry on a sword pattern used by police.

Reliable in terms of providing accurate descriptions and selling genuine items? None come to mind. I think most auction houses have a pretty rudimentary understanding of Japanese swords, so fakes or genuine pieces that have been meddled with can easily slip through the cracks.

Well then you can’t be faulted for having to look internationally. Have you seen the dedicated thread on Type 95s, which includes a link to a great downloadable reference on the topic? Might help you get a foundational idea of what period correct originals look like. In my opinion, I would steer clear of that auction house if possible. Whether intentional or not, they’ve been known to misidentify items and sell fakes along with genuine pieces in the same auction with no distinction between the two (There was a fake NCO in the auction linked above (Lot 25)). I’ve also seen previews of their items when they set up at the big US military shows and haven’t been impressed with their Japanese swords.

Just a thought, but since you are in Ireland, I would consider looking for one locally. Given the buyer’s premium and international shipping (tarrifs??), you might be in for quite a ride. Especially, if you are looking for a representative example and nothing rare.

Here’s one I recently picked up. Autumn 1942 -ya 639, with yamagata M (W) stamp.

I see you are in the PNW. You should look into the Rain Dragons sword club. You can contact @Scogg for more details.

Maybe this smith is a possible relation of Mano Masayasu and Mano Kuniyasu, who were also smiths (and brothers) from Owari during WW2. Here are a few other examples found online, but no additional details on the smith. Maybe @mecox has some knowledge of this smith. https://auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/b1119732614 https://auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/o1145185613 Also, that’s a nice looking display!

@John C Good catch. I was beginning to wonder if “Kane” was correct when I didn’t find any na stamped Kanehide references. Maybe “Kiku” could get added to the useful characters link on the home page.

Leo, It’s signed Kanehide 兼秀. On the dated side there is an inspection stamp above the date kanji - 名(na) for the Nagoya Army Arsenal inspection. Your friend’s sword looks to be in nice shape.

Hey Sam, Also Kanezane. Looks like Noshu ju Asano Kanezane saku kore 濃州住浅野兼眞作之 Similar example here (example C): ASANO KANESANE