Edo Period Corner Part II

[Bugyotsuji]

Two kozuka, Barry! Wow! And oops, I thought it was a fiendishly clever double photo of back and front.

 

The kojiri is iron, so ideally I would look for a plain iron kashira. The fuchi, or what's left of it, is lacquered wood, and could be restored. I have a friend who is a tsukamaki shi, who might be able to look at it for me. In a worst-case scenario I could repair the fuchi myself.

 

I overheard the dealer saying to someone that the saya decoration is a reference to Kojima Takanori, and when I heard that I jumped at it. Later at home I discovered that 正 Masa on the front must be a reference to Kusunoki Masashige, especially with the kikusui water and chrysanthemum design on the reverse, (despite the obvious cherry blossom on the front). In fact I am debating whether to take it back as it is not quite what he advertised. "Owned by Kojima Takanori!", my foot!

[Bugyotsuji]

17 minutes ago, Bazza said:

Oh yes Colin, both signed, one on the back in the usual position and the other on the side so as not to intrude onto the scene on the back.  And indeed inlay work.  I'll take some more photos soon and put them up.  I've been looking for an example of this work for over 10 years.  Do a Board search on HOSONO, there's quite a bit.

 

BaZZa.

 

 

Actually I have a somewhat similar one, with foxes dressed as humans, (fox's wedding?) but not here and it would take some time to find a photo. You grabbed the chance, what's not to like? One-way street! If there's no pain, it's your gain!!! 

[Bazza]

Ahh, there was one of those foxes-dressed-as-humans in the auction too, but neither the hole in the wall nor my wife would be accommodating.  There was no pain, but to venture further I would have felt fear!!

 

BaZZa.

[ChrisW]

57 minutes ago, Bugyotsuji said:

No, really!

 

 

 

 

 

I love it and would love to add it to my collection, but it is in your care it seems!

[Bugyotsuji]

Chris, your sins are forgiven! 

[Brian]

Piers, you seriously think that's terrible? Sheesh...most of us own a lot worse. Most of that is surface rust. It still shows the hamon! That will clean up easily by a togishi, I would buy that in a heartbeat.
You have to try a lot harder if you want us to think you bought junk. That's nice! Well done on spotting the potential.

[Bugyotsuji]

Brian I have generously given you a 'like' sticker, but you asked for it, so here below is the grim reality on the ground. (Many thanks,   by the way.) There might indeed be some activity and possibly a hamon. I'm still shaking from the adrenaline from the sale, and the self-doubt. See my fingers trembling...

 

Nakago and 'habaki', close-up. Which reminds me, I have a habaki maker friend who might be willing to help me out.

 

Eek... 

 

 

 

[Alex A]

Good find Piers.

 

Have you got a polisher in mind?

[Brian]

Have seen much worse, and a ken not made from a repurposed tari isn't exactly common. I would have taken a chance too.
Let's see how it turns out, I'm sure you'll be surprised.

[Bugyotsuji]

19 minutes ago, Alex A said:

Good find Piers.

 

Have you got a polisher in mind?

Thanks Alex, needing all the TLC I can get right now! 

 

Through the NBTHK connections here, there are various polishers around, and if you've got the cash then it's just a question of how good you want, or how good you think your valuable blade deserves. There is one pretty reasonable guy I have used several times, and another I used once. Happy with both, but I was not submitting any of my national treasures. Then there's a cheap-deal guy who has done a couple of bits for me, but they were pretty hopeless cases. I'll consult first with the sword appreciation Sensei because there are some progressive steps to doing the shirasaya, polish, habaki etc. and you do not want to get them in the wrong order.

 

I was listening to someone yesterday who mentioned he has a slim (did he say Tomonari?) tachi with a polisher who told him that it will take a year. It struck me that the more popular/confident/realistic the polisher, the longer they can ask you to wait... Can you measure the ability of a polisher by the time he tells you it will take? 

[Bugyotsuji]

16 minutes ago, Brian said:

Have seen much worse, and a ken not made from a repurposed tari isn't exactly common. I would have taken a chance too.
Let's see how it turns out, I'm sure you'll be surprised.

A bit like Colin's duelling pistols. I am sure the restoration will end up costing more than the ken itself, which is probably why it hadn't sold. There were other bidders, but the dealer suddenly withdrew it, and I had to negotiate with him afterwards to find some middle ground, and not just a couple of hundred bucks either!

[Winchester]

It sounds like a fun project, Piers!

 

Enjoy the journey. 

[Bugyotsuji]

Thanks Winchester and all.

(re ‘ken’ blade above)

Today I fashioned a better size and better fitting mekugi out of susu-daké, and I’ve gently brushed off the red rust and given the blade a light chōji oiling. On Sunday I hope to get some concrete feedback at the sword meeting as to the ideal next steps to take.

 

Considering the saya once more, though, I see that I must backtrack on my ‘Lord Kusunoki’ comment above. Apologies.

The flowers depicted cannot be chrysanthemums. They are meant to be cherry blossoms and it is raining on the cherry tree trunk where he wrote his famous poem. These are all symbols of Kojima Takanori and the story of his loyalty to the exiled emperor. The 正 ‘straight and true’ character must therefore be an expression of the (later) owner’s simple dedication to the Bushi ideal of loyalty.

[Bugyotsuji]

While I was oiling the blade, bathed in the glorious smell of choji abura, the pluses and minuses  became clearer.

 

Yesterday I showed the blade to a nexus of sword artisans. The opinions flew thick and fast. Yes, on the positive side, there is a hamon. One guy commented that ken do seem to sell well, and perhaps contemporary Japanese swordsmiths should be making more of them.

 

One respected elderly swordsmith from Tsuyama avowed that the two blade sides of the ken did not look perfectly symmetrical. One suggested the blade could delaminate during togi. They all questioned the presence of a 'ken' horimono like that along the blade of a ken, especially as the horimono is so long, plus it is only on one side. Could it have been carved to hide something?

 

As they added to the list of things that would need doing, one remarked that it was going to cost me some serious cash to cover everything. Then he added the clincher, "This nakago does not look so old to me." 

 

Since I had bought this thing sight-unseen, and the guy had forgotten to give me the torokusho registration card, and I had had to borrow the money to pay for it, I did not sleep very well last night. All week I have been thinking, should I ask for my money back? Would he remember to bring along the torokusho? Should I just sell it, being the 'almost' new owner, and see how much it would fetch?

 

This morning early I made a decision and went to the auction rooms with it. There was the torokusho waiting for me, thank goodness, and I was able to hand back a wad of bills to the kind lender. The guy who sold it to me a week ago must have been surprised to see it floated again so soon. Watching people's movements, it seemed to me that there was some interest in the room.

 

"And the result?", I hear you asking... OK, it was not a clean slate, but the bidding was fairly strong and I made most of my money back again.

 

So the lesson for my gamble was: there really was no need to send good money after bad.

The bonus was, I've got the chance of another punt, another day! 

 

The bad news is that I never seem to learn my lesson until it comes back and hits me in the face once again. Old age only makes this worse. 

[PNSSHOGUN]

Quote

The opinions flew thick and fast. Yes, on the positive side, there is a hamon.

This really made me laugh if that was counted as tick for the positives

 

Good result in the end, it sounded like a long and expensive headache to restore it. Perhaps a comforting thought that you weren't the only one 'mad' enough to buy it. 

[ChrisW]

49 minutes ago, Bugyotsuji said:

While I was oiling the blade, bathed in the glorious smell of choji abura, the pluses and minuses  became clearer.

 

Yesterday I showed the blade to a nexus of sword artisans. The opinions flew thick and fast. Yes, on the positive side, there is a hamon. One guy commented that ken do seem to sell well, and perhaps contemporary Japanese swordsmiths should be making more of them.

 

One respected elderly swordsmith from Tsuyama avowed that the two blade sides of the ken did not look perfectly symmetrical. One suggested the blade could delaminate during togi. They all questioned the presence of a 'ken' horimono like that along the blade of a ken, especially as the horimono is so long, plus it is only on one side. Could it have been carved to hide something?

 

As they added to the list of things that would need doing, one remarked that it was going to cost me some serious cash to cover everything. Then he added the clincher, "This nakago does not look so old to me." 

 

Since I had bought this thing sight-unseen, and the guy had forgotten to give me the torokusho registration card, and I had had to borrow the money to pay for it, I did not sleep very well last night. All week I have been thinking, should I ask for my money back? Would he remember to bring along the torokusho? Should I just sell it, being the 'almost' new owner, and see how much it would fetch?

 

This morning early I made a decision and went to the auction rooms with it. There was the torokusho waiting for me, thank goodness, and I was able to hand back a wad of bills to the kind lender. The guy who sold it to me a week ago must have been surprised to see it floated again so soon. Watching people's movements, it seemed to me that there was some interest in the room.

 

"And the result?", I hear you asking... OK, it was not a clean slate, but the bidding was fairly strong and I made most of my money back again.

 

So the lesson for my gamble was: there really was no need to send good money after bad.

The bonus was, I've got the chance of another punt, another day! 

 

The bad news is that I never seem to learn my lesson until it comes back and hits me in the face once again. Old age only makes this worse. 

 

 

A shame you got rid of it so soon! I would have at least waited for an opinion on it from a polisher you like first (someone who does it for the love of swords and not necessarily the money... as if there is much money to be made for the time spent anyways!)

Not to be crude, but to quote a favorite author of mine, Kurt Vonnegut Jr. once famously said, "Opinions are like assholes, everyone's got one." I find that opinions fly fast and quick when people are looking to add it to their collection or they have some sort of interest in it.

 

Also a shame you didn't give me first crack at it, I would have probably went for it. Oh well! I am sure it will find someone who will take it on.

As for the blade itself, its possible it was an omi-yari, but to me... it looks like a ken and looks ubu. They're not standardized pieces and they're fairly rare. The final judgement would have been a good polisher and then shinsa. Ken were made through all time periods, so it matters little if the patination does not appear to be that old.
 

The only problem that I can see on it from the photos would be that long ware that appears to be running up most of one side of the blade. As for the possible atobori? It'd study the patination of the nakago closely to see if the rust within the carving seems to match the rest of the nakago. If it doesn't, then I guess we have an answer.
 

 

Lastly, I've taken a risk of a ken before.. returned it too. I discovered that there was a nasty hagire hiding within the pitting on one side of it. Was the quickest return I could have made. So I understand your hesitance!

 

Best of luck to you Piers! You'll find one soon that speaks to you I am sure.

~Chris

[Brian]

Love to hear what sort of money you were taking here.
I think they were talking it down unfairly and maybe because they wanted a chance at it. I think it would have fetched $1000+ since ken are rare and it would likely come out looking decent. But at least you get to sleep better.

[Bugyotsuji]

Normally no Brian, but just for you… the original guy withdrew it from the auction at ¥50,000 as it was nowhere near what he wanted. Later as he was packing up I went to ask him what he really wanted and he said it owed him ¥130,000. As a return for a past favour, though, he said I could have it for ¥100,000.

Today it started at ¥50,000, and halted at ¥85,000 where I was getting ready to nod agreement, when someone bid 90,000 and another then said 95,000. The house takes a fee from that but I was relieved to be almost out of the woods.

As Chris said above there will be another one along. (Maybe this one will resurface somewhere in resurrected shape.)

[Bugyotsuji]

PS The wife’s birthday on Saturday and she only ever wants cash, and a whole lot of other payments are due so I am a bit relieved; the timing, star alignments and checkboxes for this kind of bravado were not 100% right. 

 

………………

On another note, yesterday there were some excellent tosogu on display. Interestingly, there was a tsuba which had recently been on display at the Osafune Sword Museum showing the Momo Taro story. Somehow the 'Negi' shrine priest had spotted it and suggested to the owner that it might be an excellent 'hono' dedication to Kibitsu Hiko Shrine... as this area is where the legend started. Well, the owner had brought it along, so we were encouraged to take quick shots before it disappeared into the shrine's vaults forever! There must be other Momotaro examples out there, but this was the first that I have seen.

 

 

 

[Bugyotsuji]

And besides, I had bought something else for a different project, so one alone was probably enough for the time being! 

[ChrisW]

2 hours ago, Bugyotsuji said:

And besides, I had bought something else for a different project, so one alone was probably enough for the time being! 

 

Well, you can't tease us and not show and tell!

[DoTanuki yokai]

I would also guess the Ken wasn’t very old, it lacks the typical wear(from polishes) on the edges that gives the old ones the “hourglass” shaped blade in my opinion. 

[Bugyotsuji]

Ah, yes, now we are talking! That eases the pain considerably, Christian! 

[Bugyotsuji]

On 5/20/2024 at 11:54 PM, ChrisW said:

 

Well, you can't tease us and not show and tell!

Christopher, there was a long gun that I just had to have. (That's why I did not have any cash left for the Ken.) As usual with these things it needs some work. The bisen needs loosening, the ramrod is stuck fast, the lockwork mechanism does not engage properly, and a crucial part of the decorative fittings is missing.

 

It is away in a bucket-brigade of artisans being given some TLC, and I forgot to take any overall shots of it first. I can give you a word picture, though. I know we all prefer words!

 

Despite the torukusho saying the Mei is partly unreadable, I've figured it out. This was for me historically interesting. It was made in late Edo in Matsushiro, the castle there originally ('Kaizu Jo') built by the famous Yamamoto Kansuke. This castle served Takeda Shingen under the command of (his lover) Kosaka Masanobu (Kasuga Toratsuna), and was fought over by the Uesugi and Sanada. Later the castle was awarded in 1622 to the Sanada clan who renamed it Matsushiro Jo, and they remained there until the end of the Edo period. The castle itself was repeatedly burned down or destroyed in earthquakes but always rebuilt.

The gun in question.

The Bakumatsu 1850s~ gunsmith studied under a well-known Edo Bakufu smith named Akagari. In a nod to their old Takeda roots, I guess, the little ibo-kakushi screen is in the shape of a hanabishi mon. There are two or three other unusual features to this gun that originally piqued my interest.  Will report as and when.

 

Am I forgiven?

 

 

[ChrisW]

1 hour ago, Bugyotsuji said:

Christian, there was a long gun that I just had to have. (That's why I did not have any cash left for the Ken.) As usual with these things it needs some work. The bisen needs loosening, the ramrod is stuck fast, the lockwork mechanism does not engage properly, and a crucial part of the decorative fittings is missing.

 

It is away in a bucket-brigade of artisans being given some TLC, and I forgot to take any overall shots of it first. I can give you a word picture, though. I know we all prefer words!

 

Despite the torukusho saying the Mei is partly unreadable, I've figured it out. This was for me historically interesting. It was made in late Edo in Matsushiro, the castle there originally ('Kaizu Jo') built by the famous Yamamoto Kansuke. This castle served Takeda Shingen under the command of (his lover) Kosaka Masanobu (Kasuga Toratsuna), and was fought over by the Uesugi and Sanada. Later the castle was awarded in 1622 to the Sanada clan who renamed it Matsushiro Jo, and they remained there until the end of the Edo period. The castle itself was repeatedly burned down or destroyed in earthquakes but always rebuilt.

The gun in question.

The Bakumatsu 1850s~ gunsmith studied under a well-known Edo Bakufu smith named Akagari. In a nod to their old Takeda roots, I guess, the little ibo-kakushi screen is in the shape of a hanabishi mon. There are two or three other unusual features to this gun that originally piqued my interest.  Will report as and when.

 

Am I forgiven?

 

 

 

 

Forgiven! And please, its just Chris. Or Christopher if you insist.

If you ever come to the Chicago show, be sure to stop by my table and I'll show my tanegashima as well!

[Bugyotsuji]

2 hours ago, ChrisW said:

 

 

Forgiven! And please, its just Chris. Or Christopher if you insist.

If you ever come to the Chicago show, be sure to stop by my table and I'll show my tanegashima as well!

Apologies, Chris, I was getting you mixed up with DoTanuki Yokai above! Aaaarrrggghhh.... Getting my Chrises crossed!

(And thanks for the invite! I'd love to. I lived about six years in the US many, many years ago, mostly on the east coast, but the last time I visited must have been back in the 1990s. ) 

[Bugyotsuji]

Yesterday I met the guy who is arranging the work and managed to catch up a little on the long gun. Although he is supremely busy with his livelihood, he said he couldn't resist taking the lockwork apart. The internal mainspring coil is iron, (many are shinchu) but the little catch had worn away, preventing the serpentine from staying locked in the upright position. He has filed a new notch, and says it now works fine. "These things needed constant adjustment", he commented.

 

That reminded me of an old Kamakura screen showing the garden of a residence with archery stands and accessories, and various bushi drawing and stringing bows, etc.

 

After fashioning a new sakura-za for the mekugi ana, he will pass it along to the guy with the magic to loosen any (?) stuck Bisen. And Bob's yer uncle!

 

(I managed to extract the jammed ramrod, and to find a genuine old one which fits almost exactly.)

[Bugyotsuji]

So the guy says it might take until October. Covering my disappointment I replied, “No worries, I’m not in a hurry.”

 

And today the phone rings and he says it’s ready.

 

This week I don’t have time to go and get it…… aaaarrrrgggghhhhh… 

[Bugyotsuji]

On Sunday I managed to wangle some time to swing by and pick up the matchlock. Not only has he done a lovely job, almost exactly as I had imagined, but he went out of his way to follow a little personal request I had made about use of the old shinchu material I was providing. 

 

Later I sent him a Line message saying 「ありがたき幸せ」Arigataki Shiawase!

 

More power to the Osafune artisans!

[Bugyotsuji]

The shinchū repair needed to be genuine old brass so I sourced a little old hand rake used for hibachi ash. Fairly thick, and blackened, it looks like something left over from the Edo period. (Some years ago I had already sacrificed one of these for a repair to an old matchlock pistol. It worked well that time.)

 

They usually have a hole in the top of the grip, but this one didn’t. I asked him if he could take a circular section from the handle to use to fashion a new sakura-za. The rake might then remain intact and uncompromised. He did all of that with a fretsaw.

 

Here you can see three hand rakes and a small hibachi. The hole is large, admittedly, but the hai-kaki is still viable as an ash rake.

(The one top right is silver, the two lower ones 真鍮 shinchū)

 

Here is the result, before

 

and after.