A suraged katana in JSA

[Carlo Giuseppe Tacchini]

Above the division (adjusted) is the new kiri-yasurime, whilst below (preserved) around the mei is taka-no-ha. Also, the nakago of this blade would suggest that it has been shortened more than once.

 

Hi Paul. Great post, no matter if the blade is faked or not.

I have a question about the process you've so beautifully explained.

Why has been choosen a different style of Yasurime for the altered part ?

If the old was Higaki the reason is obvious but Takanoha ?

Is still too difficult to make the upper part uniformed to the lower one or is intentionally made exactly to not be

misunderstood as an attempt to fake ?

[Guest reinhard]

Sometimes it's more important what's gone but what's left. Another hint: Imagine yourself a crooked dealer (I know this is very difficult for all of us) with a pretty nice Mino-style katana; unfortunately signed on the omote and dated on the ura by a less known, unimportant smith. What can you do about it, to make some profit? Remove the signature first, of course, but how do you erase the traces most effectively? And afterwards: many customers prefer a signed blade.

 

reinhard

[Paul Martin]

As everyone has said previously, to kantei this blade through fuzzy photos cannot be done. However, try not to confuse good or bad suriage with forgery. I agree the extra mekugi ana and plugs look somewhat strange.

Just to quote what I originally said. I was just explaining the suriage process how it should be done and the signs to look for.

 

Rather than focusing only on the nakago, another fundamental point would be to look at the shape of the blade and imagine it in it's original shape. or even a closer scrutiny of the sayagaki

[Paul Martin]

Another good sign is that the nakago-jiri is kiri. Here is a good example of suriage. The yasurime above the inscripiton are different. In this case, as it had a kinzougan inscription on both sides, the togi-damari had to be painstakingly removed on either side. Also notice between the arrows the remaining line of the original hamon.

 

Here is the nakago in question, if you follow the line of the hamon into the nakago, it appears to be going to where it should.

 

I have no idea if it is gimei or not. I was just trying to point out that the person who shortened it appeared to try to do a good job and appears to have followed the rules of suriage. I do not know the reason to choose different yasurime to what was previously a blade, but there are many suriage like this.

 

Best

[Guest reinhard]

Hi Paul,

 

1) Saka-sujikai (or katte-agari) filemarks are very rare and usually not associated with Mino smiths. These would be higaki or taka-no-ha patterns.

2) The picture of the sword in question was taken from an angle right from the optical axis. This can be told from the view of the kake. There might also be a deviation from the horizontal axis. It is therefore without any relevance as far as its geometry is concerned.

3) Saya-gaki don't mean much (if not confirmed by additional sources)

4) A nakago pretending to be shortened, will usually have a kiri or a shallow kuri-jiri end, just like the truly shortened ones.

5) Faded Hamon on nakago is a tricky thing to evaluate. I don't dare to speculate in this field. Filing, changing shape of the nakago, heat-treatment and chemistry leave too many options.

 

Anyway, I'm glad you've posted the nakago of the YASUSADA sword. This is what a shortened katana should look like. The difference to the sword in question is quite obvious.

 

As for the mei: Naoe Shizu KANETOMO is out of the question. Later followers in Mino might have signed with a nijimei, but then....There were smiths going north using this great name, working in Iwashiro and in Mutsu (Aizu), but this is not what this sword looks like.

 

reinhard

[Paul Martin]

Hi Reinhard

 

Thank you, I had realised my mistake. In a moment of doubt, just before leaving the house, I made the mistake of posting hastily. I am not sure if it was just timing, but I had since retracted that part of my post before your reply. I promise I will not do it again.

 

I have not once tried to imply this is the droid you are looking for, only inform people of the correct suriage process, which many people had not heard about. Yes, there are spurious blades with kiri nakago-jiri, but there are also many mumei blades trying to pass as suriage with iriyama-gata jiri etc. This, and the point of the line of the hamon, the authenticity of the sayagaki and the overall shape was just highlighting one of the many points to look for when assessing blades, hopefully giving the many members of the board a broader view of not only looking at the nakago to assist them in making up their own mind on this and future occasions. These points were not directed towards someone of your obvious knowledge and experience.

 

As for the Yasusada, again, just an illustration for the members with points to look for, but then again not all people were as skilful as the Umetada school in suriage etc.

 

Best regards

[Jacques D.]

Hi,

 

Another example where the first kanji was preserved well.

 

[Guest reinhard]

Hi Paul,

 

I've got your point. Your lesson about proper suriage was very interesting and should be kept in mind by everyone interested in the subject.

 

reinhard