Help with mei please.

[JohnC]

I am new to this site, and am hoping for some help in translating the mei on a katana that I recently received. The instructions on posting in this section suggested including some background. The katana was given to me as a gift by a WWII historian who knew that I have an interest in Japanese culture which began with 15 years studying karate, and includes reading a good many books on Japanese culture and history. Owning a katana has always been a dream of mine. I am not asking this for any commercial reasons, but just wanting to know and understand as much as possible about the blade that was gifted to me. The blade came with standard WWII tsuka and tsuba, but the fact that the blade displays a distinct hamon, whose outline and nie leads me to believe that the blade may be handmade as opposed to factory made. Also, it came in a black lacquered saya as opposed to a standard metal military saya. I have spent many hours on different web sites trying to find translations for the kanji on the nakago, but the only character that my uneducated eye has been able to identify is the third one down, which I believe to be "san", or three.

I would appreciate any help in trying to identify the history of this blade. Here is a link to some photos of the mei, the blade, including one of the kissaki as requested.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/11703553@N ... 334667448/

Thank you in advance for any help.

John C.

[Bugyotsuji]

I know it is better not to post until you are 100% sure, but even so, here is a 75% version based on the upside-down signature!

関住　川崎　兼泉作 (?)

[cabowen]

Seki ju Kawasaki Kanezumi saku 兼泉

 

WWII era.

[JohnC]

Many thanks to both Piers and Chris for taking the time to get back to me so quickly. Piers, I apologize for the photograph being upside down; that is just the way that I was holding the camera in an attempt to get the best light. I have now corrected the picture orientation on the link.

I was happy to see the agreement in your translations. After I made my inquiring post, I received a piece of paper with a translation from the person that sold the sword to the person that in turn gifted it to me. That translation did not make sense to me, since there were not enough translated words to match the number of kanji. It simply said SEKI KANEYASU SAKU. The fact that both of you were in agreement on your translations gives me the confidence to disregard the late arriving translation that came after I had received the katana.

I must say that I have a very heightened respect for the ability to go from the roughly chiseled kanji to the full drawn characters before it can be translated into english.

I must admit to a little let down in that after going through numerous sources, each listing hundreds of names of smiths from the Seki region of that time, that I was unable to find a match for the signature. Oh well, I have not quit searching yet.

Thanks again to you both for your sharing your time and expertise.