mike123456

Interesting. Thank you. This is all good to know. So let me ask you. Since it appears that the blade was made in the 16th century, doesn't it make sense that the other pieces do not fit exactly right? Wouldn't they have to retro-fit contemporary parts to an older blade?

Not taking it as you crapping on the sword at all. I'm just looking for info, be it good bad or ugly! Here are a couple of pictures of the assembly. The first one shows the 5 parts that make it up. The second pic shows it back on the sword. There must have been spacers in there at some point. The handle is on as far as it can go, and you can see there is a pretty good sized gap in which the assembly just slides up & down freely

Thanks @Grey Doffin and @Michaelr I appreciate the advice. We definitely know NOT to do any sort of fixing or restoration! I will take a look at the links and continue researching. It's definitely very interesting already!

There is a cap. But it seems to be metal. Definitely not leather. It looks like the handle's wrapping goes through the cap to keep it on. The tassel is just tied to the wrapping and doesn't go through the cap.

Great help! Thanks so much

Hello everyone. This is my first time visiting your site, so if I'm posting in the wrong spot or doing anything incorrectly, I apologize in advance! My Aunt passed away recently and we found this katana along with a good luck flag. They were given to her in the 1940's by her godfather when he returned from serving in the Pacific. It's about 3 feet long. (12 in ruler for scale) The blade is still in very good shape (sharp, not rusted), and has been greased up with something, I assume to help preserve it. The handle itself is starting to fall apart and the little piece that keeps it attached has disappeared, even since the pics were taken. There appears to be writing on the tang. It's very difficult to see. I took the best pic I could. The sheath is not marked in any way. If anyone has any information about it, it would be most appreciated. My uncle is very curious about it. Can we tell if it was an officer's sword or did it belong to a 'regular' soldier? Is it one of a million made in a factory, or does the writing on the tang suggest something different? Is it worth anything--to a collector or to a museum? Any info at all. I do have access to it, and could provide more pictures if needed. Thanks very much