Dark hamon and type of polish

[Marius]

Dear All,

 

I have found this wakizashi on eBay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Antique-Japanese-Sa ... dZViewItem

 

What strikes me is the very dark yakiba, which usually looks much brighter in photographs than the ji-hada. What is the reason for this in your opinion? Is it the quality of the picture? The type of polish?

[Andi B.]

Strange...maybe the blade is etched - then the yakiba turns dark while the ji-hada becomes matt white (the dark tinge comes frome oxides).

 

Otherwise it's very tricky to catch a hamon on photos - maybe it's simply an illumination problem...?

[Brian]

It's the polish. Has been taken to a certain level (foundation polish maybe?) and not further imho. Better than acid or ferric chloride treatment. Quite nice f/k there too.

He seems to know his Nihonto and terminology..so I would expect he would have checked out the tsuba previously to see if it is shoshin or not.

 

Brian

[Guest reinhard]

This is poor junk probably produced outside Japan and should not be discussed here.

 

reinhard

[Stephen]

IMHO its not junk and can be talked about here, like Brian said its the type of polish, in fact in the right hands of a togi id would look very good.

[roninjje]

I agree, it's just the stage of polish. I've seen it before, by polishers who haven't progressed to the finishing stones.

[Guest reinhard]

It's not about polish. Reading the e-bay-description of this blade and koshirae, it is insulting. It is an insult to Japanese craftsmanship and their cultural legacy in general. "Kaneiye"-tsuba, "choji-hamon" ? Bull...If some people want to discuss this object? Nevermind. But I suggest it stays where it belongs: in the e-bay pipeline.

 

reinhard

[zuiho]

Hello,

Not all Japanese swords are gems. Many are just run-of -the-mill and that seems to be the case here.

a genuine nihonto, of no distinction, in rough polish done to dress up a worn surface cheaply. the Koshirae

are definiitely Japanese. The tsuka-ito is correctly weaved, the same looks real and the diamonds of the wrap

are even and well-proportioned. You don't see that on cheap foreign copies or amateur repairs.

I think nie can even be discerned in the hamon and hakkikake in the boshi.

The fuchi and kashira are nicely worked, if a bit worn and mismatched.

 

If Reinhard believes roughly made swords cannot be Japanese then, perhaps, he should do research on

the weapons of the Satsuma rebellion which often had poor quality blades, canvas for Ito and common washers

as menuki. They were ugly and crude but true weapons of the last Samurai .

 

William G.

[Brian]

Moved to the eBay section (which is what I think the point was)

If we miss a post in the wrong place occasionally, just pm me or Stephen or use the "report post" function. It happens sometimes. :|

 

Brian

[Goldy]

Hi all,

 

The blade looks very tired to me (look at the munemachi and hamachi or rather, the lack of them) - perhaps the polisher got so far and thought better of continuing.

 

Just a theory.

 

Cheers

[Brian]

That blade is not tired. It is not fake. It is not acid treated. It is what you see in the pics.

It is just an average wakizashi in the process of a non-professional polish in my opinion. It has nice fittings and a nice hamon, and is nothing fantastic, but not junk either. It needs further work, and would be a fair piece to have polished further if it goes cheap enough.

Let's not over analyse it, not all that much to discuss on it, is there? Looks like there will be some nice hataraki there.

 

Brian

[Goldy]

My apologies. Since reading this thread:

 

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=2178

 

I am a little more educated. Please consider my previous post the product of an over enthusiastic newbie.

[Guest reinhard]

The tsuka-ito is correctly weaved, the same looks real and the diamonds of the wrap

are even and well-proportioned.

If Reinhard believes roughly made swords cannot be Japanese then, perhaps, he should do research on the weapons of the Satsuma rebellion

William G.

 

You must be kidding. The Same looks too white, the size of the Tsuka-Ito does not fit the length of the Tsuka and was obviously wrapped by an amateur. The kashira is too big for the handle and was probably taken from somewhere else. BTW I'm quite familiar with early stages of the polishing process and mountings of Satsuma rebellion swords.

 

But what really annoys me is the description by the seller:(quote)

 

"excellent Japanese polish"

"very valuable sword"

"wonderful bluish color"

"very old iron Tsuba"

"simple and well balanced design"

 

This is just a crook speaking and discussing it seriously is a setback for all, who really want to learn something. I was only responding to this piece, because of its being placed in the Nihon-To section.

 

reinhard

[Marius]

This is just a crook speaking and discussing it seriously is a setback for all, who really want to learn something. I was only responding to this piece, because of its being placed in the Nihon-To section.

 

Dear Reinhard,

 

I have actually learned a lot from your remarks. To me, a newbie, it is amazing. You are right about the sloppiniess of the tsuka elements. Thanks a bunch :-) It is always good to have a discussion and to be able to learn.