moriarty

Greetings Marcin, This seems to be a re-seller from the ebay store ”World Armor Antique DAIMYOU”, judging by how they didn't even bother to take new pictures and the condition of the blade itself, the price is certainly not in my comfort zone..

Sharp as always Moriyama! This sword did spark some curiosity in me, wonder which Tadayoshi (if legitimate) could belong to

Greetings Ronald, Thanks for posting such clear pictures, I agree with the mei reading from Uwe above, (Tadayoshi)--忠吉 As for the Sayagaki, I'm reading: 肥前国住人近江守忠吉件刀粐三百有余年- (Resident of Hizen Province, Omi no kami Tadayoshi, (made?) this sword for over 300 years ago. Bit iffy in the later kanji, but I hope this helps

Greetings Kyle, The picture you've shown seems to contain a NENGO or date. It reads: 昭和甲申春- Shōwa Kinoe saru-haru (Spring of 1944?)

Wish I could reach those days with a fat wallet..

Would definitely tempt me to commit seppuku..

Perhaps 久保佶?

I can definitely see your point Conway! Since they all look so different, could we be dealing with different smiths/students under the same moniker? This one does appears pretty low on the quality scale

Greetings Bill, Many congratulations on the new addition, hope you're enjoying it. As of now the signature is Watanabe Masanobu--渡辺正延 (Thanks Conway for the correction!) Couldn't find much on this Watanabe(s), since they bear apparent connection to Kanenaga Kind Regards

Greetings Mal, I got a few Yoshimune oshigata saved, but I believe Bill's example may just be a lower-grade undocumented smith, judging by the choppy style. Hope this collage can help my point. Kind Regards

Greetings Bill, It's a nice shin-gunto you got there, fittings seem well kept. As for the kanji, I believe it reads: 義宗- Yoshimune (left side)- 昭和二十年一月- January 1945

Good eye Thomas! It's certainly more plausible

Greetings Gethin, Wonderful piece of history you got there, the attribution paper goes as follows: ”紺系碱具足右袖 長さ 二尺二寸七谷 室町時代の将軍格のものと思われる. 具足の右袖で特に貴重な丈化財として筑後国任武藤家に古くかり 忙末しい名品也 明治参拾貳年春 武藤秀弘” Navy blue armor right sleeve Length: 2 shaku 2 sun 7 tan Thought to have belonged to a shogun of the Muromachi period. (This) Right sleeve of armor is a particularly valuable item, and is an ancient treasure of the Muto family/clan, who were in charge of Chikugo Province A masterpiece Spring of the 32nd year of the Meiji era (Spring of 1899) -Muto Hidehiro In regards to the Kamon, it could be unrelated to the Muto clan altogether, but haven't found much about it, hopefully someone will catch it soon. Best Regards, Maurice

Greetings Gwyn, This seems to be another example of cheap Chinese made sword from The Last Samurai movie. It's says 今古有神奉志士- ”The Imperial Patriots”

Greetings John,, Thanks for letting such an interesting piece, militaria with some attached history is always a plus. Giving it the old college try: Left Outer Side X四海軍予え- (Fourth Naval Fleet Preliminary/Reserves? ) If any, the kanji above should be 第 Right Inner Fuchi- 二七七五 - (2-7-7-5) Left Inner Fuchi- 遞松岡下XホX - (Matsuoka Shita..Ho..) Hope this helps somewhat

Greetings P.A, While I can't comment on the quality on the piece, the kanji embedded should read: 裡理部 吉川X (Internal Affairs Department, Yoshikawa ???) Can't see much of the last kanji to the bottom left (which should be the first name), hope this helps.

Greetings Nick, I'm reading the mei as 謙之作-(Made by Kaneyuki?). Saw a similar mei floating around in a chinese copy, but perhaps this one has some validity, but I'm not trusting that hamon either. Kind regards

Pretty good choice if you want fancy kitchenware

As with everything, it depends on the buyer, some can enjoy dedications as a caretaking lineage of sorts. Never seen this topic affect western collectors for all that's worth.

I believe the translation could be 賞浅田ヒ具吾君重代 -(Presented to Asada Higo?) As John kindly pointed above, many dedications are often inscribed on the mune instead of the ura side. Maybe it has something to do with Japanese nihonto collectors thinking front and center dedications lower the value of the piece? But that's just a personal ramble Kind Regards

I agree with Steve, a few pictures of the blade may help solve the issue My best guess is 藩林重大(?), which doesn't make much sense in context. Kind Regards

Perhaps a stamp? Curious piece indeed

Thanks for the close-ups, as I've commented above, it's quite the beautiful (if mismatched) arrangement. If my limited knowledge serves correctly, the Kabuto should be no older than late 16th or 17th century, like most pieces of surviving armor. Hope you enjoy this Christmas present to the fullest!

Lovely Kabuto!

Greetings Rodriguez, Maybe you could post more pictures of the sugata to figure out if it's a gimei or not. From a first glance, the mei does look poorly etched. Kind Regards