my first Nihonto purchase

[steve0]

Firstly so everyone is clear, I know very little about Nihonto, I have always liked the Japanese culture and have always loved their craftsmanship with katanas but never had pockets deep enough to purchase the real thing up until now. In light of this please forgive me if i do not use correct terms as i am just learning.

 

Anyways here is my first addition and hopefully I can get some feedback from the more knowledgeable members on here to see if I made a good or bad decision ….either way i like the blade but not so much its saya.

 

I'm really looking forward to unraveling its past because although it is papered by Fujishiro, it is unsigned and only attributed to the Gassan school , its from the 18th century according to the dealer I purchased it from but i guess i will at least try and find out more over the next 12 months or so if possible and i am very much looking forward to it as i enjoy research.

 

forgive the low res pics, they were part of the sale thread, i will get better ones later.

You can also see the fuji cert in this thread here;

 

viewtopic.php?f=15&t=13470

 

I have some books on the way which were recommended here for beginners so I will refrain from making any further impulse purchases until i have read both as that seems like a wise thing to do.

 

Anyway, hope you enjoy the pics and let me know if you have any questions.

 

Note: I have no reason to suspect this is a fake but hey what do i know.

[steve0]

2 more pics

[cabowen]

Looks to be a very nice sword and an excellent start! Congrats....

[Veli]

Nice sword indeed! But if I have understood correctly, it cannot be from the 18th century if it is Gassan school...

 

BR, Veli

[steve0]

Nice sword indeed! But if I have understood correctly, it cannot be from the 18th century if it is Gassan school...

 

BR, Veli

 

Can you translate the fuji cert and shed more light on its age please?

 

I have tried but Hanji is kind of difficult for me and believe me i been trying

 

Note: I do have a full translation on the way in a week or so but i am impatient.

 

not2: i know its not 19th century or its tang would not be the colour..

[Brian]

Was just going to say...

Congrats on starting out with something in polish, and with papers from someone respected. Sounds like you are doing everything right, and have ended up with a very nice sword with nice fittings. Good polish too.

 

Brian

[Veli]

Steve,

 

Your blade was attributed to Gassan Sadayoshi "family" (school), thus it originates from the first half of the 19th century.

 

Veli

[christianmalterre]

Ahhh :D

at least one here who does judge... (maybe thanks to us "dreamers here" constantly trying so to head the right way... )?

Very nice Sword!-Very good blade(for an starting)-much better than many others...Many!

Now you have to buy you (at least) Afu Shinto and ShinShinto Volumes so to do your´s own further research...

 

Veli,

Gassan school did start much earlier...

 

Christian

[Veli]

Ahhh :D

Veli,

Gassan school did start much earlier...

 

Christian

 

Christian,

 

Most certainly the Gassan school was active during koto period, but if I have understood correctly, during the 18th century it did not exist until revived by Gassan Sadayoshi in the early 19th century...

 

BR, Veli

[bmoore1322]

YES, a very beautiful sword, congrats.

 

Thanks for sharing it with us.

 

Brian

[christianmalterre]

Veli,

speaking honestly-as i do imagine you do know at least...

What is/has ben written-and what did you write/read here?

 

Christian

 

(do not worry-it´s certainly a fine blade for an first serious purchase)

[Veli]

Please correct me if I made some kind of a mistake, but I just wanted to state a fact that seemed obvious to me: a blade attributed to Gassan Sadayoshi school cannot be from the 18th century (=1701-1800) if the attribution is correct, and I would be inclined to trust Fujishiro papers...

 

BR, Veli

[NihontoEurope]

Veli,

 

I interpreted it the same way.

 

I don't really see the issue.

 

/Martin

[Jamie]

Welcome to the forum. I think you'll learn from this blade. Congrats on doing well on your first purchase. Many of us didn't do nearly as well. Now just read, read, and read some more. Try to attend some sword shows.

[Ron STL]

Wow, nice sword and nice polish! You are fortunate to be able to start your studies with such a beautiful, in-polish sword. There is a nice inexpensive soft-cover book on Gassan which gives great information from the early days up until today. Gassa Sadatoshi is still making swords in Japan, today. It looks like the ji-hada is brought out very well, something that will allow to really "see" the forging! Congratulations again...Ron H.

[Ken-Hawaii]

You are fortunate to be able to start your studies with such a beautiful, in-polish sword.

 

Ron, I don't agree that Steve is "fortunate" as he obviously did some serious study before choosing his first Nihonto. Now I might agree that he was lucky to find it.

 

Ken

[steve0]

Hi Guys

 

thanks for all the kind words and advice.

 

I did once own a very nice reference book but I loaned it out and never got it back, I dont even recall who i loaned it to however that book and about 100 hours of net study was what got me started back in 04/05 and formed the basis of my knowledge . When the urge hit me again a few weeks ago, I started reading again like a madman online and discovered the Japanese sword index and quite a few other fine sites including this one ( I wish Dr Rich would get more bandwidth ) so yeah I did not buy it blindly and I knew what I wanted in my first blade and I had a beginners idea of what to look for and avoid such as fleabay.

 

A guy on ebay actually sent me a blade from interstate to look at because when i asked him for better pics it looked machine sharpened and i told him as much so he sent it to me without payment (wanted 1600 for it) but alas when i got it, it was a Chinese knock off so i sent it back, no harm no foul. The guy was ok with that to, he tried and I said no so hey.

 

it was at that point i realized if i wanted a real blade i would have to pay real money as i was not going to get off the hook cheaply, especially with my limited knowledge and insistence on criteria.

 

I think the 3 other key things I did sort of right is;

 

1. Buy from a respected dealer

 

2. Buy something with papers

 

3. Buy something polished

 

I prefer not to say how much i paid for it but it was not cheap nor was it very expensive but it did dent my wallet thats for sure, however after getting feedback from all of you, i now know i made a good decision ( To the dealer if you are reading this: Sorry mate i had to check )

 

Either way the blade really is quite beautiful and trust me those pics do not do it justice, I must have spent at least 4 hours last night examining its finer details. Its also quite light considering and feels very natural in my hands weight wise.

 

I am waiting for some more stuff to arrive for it but when it does I shall attempt to take better pics of it to share with you all.

 

thanks again for taking a look for me and validating my purchase.

 

Peace.

[steve0]

Please correct me if I made some kind of a mistake, but I just wanted to state a fact that seemed obvious to me: a blade attributed to Gassan Sadayoshi school cannot be from the 18th century (=1701-1800) if the attribution is correct, and I would be inclined to trust Fujishiro papers...

 

BR, Veli

 

Sorry I have miss quoted, the dealer said it was made in the late 1800's, not 18th century. I now realise they are not one in the same date wise.

 

 

I did say I was learning

 

peace.

[Tcat]

This is the Gassan Ichimon from John Grasso over at nihonto.com.au if im not mistaken.. Really beautiful sword! Congratulations Steve.

 

I was also fortunate (careful?!) enough to make my first nihonto purchase from John, a polished blade with papers - I still have the sword and I continue to get great enjoyment from it; have never had second thoughts about buying.

 

I know im parrotting old hat, but I think it really is best for new collectors to buy papered swords in polish... theres just less chance of disappointment or getting burned, and thus turned off of nihonto alltogether. I think John's pricing is very fair also.

 

Regards,

[runagmc]

Steve, nice first sword... make sure you find some reading material on proper sword maintenance. I'd hate to see your sword's polish get marred. Try this link, http://www.ksky.ne.jp./~sumie99/treatment.html

[steve0]

This is the Gassan Ichimon from John Grasso over at nihonto.com.au if im not mistaken.. Really beautiful sword! Congratulations Steve.

 

I was also fortunate (careful?!) enough to make my first nihonto purchase from John, a polished blade with papers - I still have the sword and I continue to get great enjoyment from it; have never had second thoughts about buying.

 

Regards,

 

 

You are correct, it did indeed come from John who appears to be a stand up guy and a good person to do business with.

[steve0]

Steve, nice first sword... make sure you find some reading material on proper sword maintenance. I'd hate to see your sword's polish get marred. Try this link, http://www.ksky.ne.jp./~sumie99/treatment.html

 

Thanks for the link, thats a really cool site...more reading materials :D

 

 

peace.

[almeister]

Steve ,

Excellent first blade - sold by A Well Respected Dealer in Aus !, If you have any queries/questions on maintenance of the blade - just contact John - as he would have studied this blade thoroughly - prior to sale !

Enjoy !

Cheers

Alan

[Marius]

Steve, nice first sword... make sure you find some reading material on proper sword maintenance. I'd hate to see your sword's polish get marred. Try this link, http://www.ksky.ne.jp./~sumie99/treatment.html

 

Adam, if you don't want Steve's sword's polish get marred, you might want to mention that he should stay away from uchiko. It is so easy to make nasty hike-kizu.

[almeister]

Thanks Mariusz .

Exactly the point I was expressing , I had a blade polished through John & He said "Irrespective of the myths etc .. of the powder - do not use it on this blade - strict instructions by the polisher himself ! " Different styles of polish out there - a full polish is a serious amount of money - Do what is suggested by someone who has been instructed directly by the polisher !

In most cases / or if in doubt - just a fine layer of oil ( once a month ) - as you well know "no touch by fingers - human sweat is probably one of the most corrosive things that can effect a blade/ polish .

I use the Good Old Singer Sewing Machine Oil - cause everyone else I know in AUS does !

Cheers

Alan

Cheers

Alan

[steve0]

I ordered some singer machine oil on tuesday at John's prompting so should have it in my hands by the weekend allowing me to wipe it down finally and study it properly.

 

I did pull it apart last night rather cautiously and the utsuri looks really nice in the hamon, sure i dont have anything to compare it against except what i have seen in books and online but the activity really is very nice :D

 

I am also very impressed at the detail in each and every part of the sword including its accessories, i am like wow each time i examine it ( I am such a n00b i know)

 

if i am lucky my oil will arrive today, if not tomorrow i hope.

 

peace

[runagmc]

I agree with the comments about uchiko for the most part, but if done the right way with high quality uchiko, it's still the best way I know of to completely remove all the streaks of oil to study a blade. I don't oil my swords unless I'm storing them, for that very reason. If you repetatively oil and then clean with uchiko, the color of the jigane from nugui will fade, and you will likely cause hike kizu.

 

In summary, be very carefull with uchiko and use it as rarely as possible... and it would be a good idea to practice cleaning a sword that's not in pristine polish, if possible.

[cabowen]

Use a micro fiber cloth. It will clean the blade perfectly and not leave any scratches.

[Lindus]

Well done young man,if you can move up from here we are redundant

[Nihonto Australia]

Hi Everyone,

 

Congratulations Steve on buying a great sword for your first purchase, you chose very well! I wish I started with something like that .. ha.

Thanks for all the postive feedback I read, I really appreicate it. I stand behind what I sell and I wouldnt sell a sword that I wouldnt have in my own personal collection.

 

I am currently in Japan on a buying trip, hoping to find some treasures.. if you are after anything in particular, shoot me an email and i'll see if I can track anything down for you.

 

Check out this recently listed Tachi with NBTHK Certificate- it's a really interesting rare order made sword for a famous samurai who's residence has been designated as an important cultural asset with cutting test. - http://nihonto.com.au/html/order_made_h ... i_wit.html

 

enjoy!

 

kind regards

 

John Grasso

http://www.nihonto.com.au

info@nihonto.com.au