Help Wanted

[IJASWORDS]

Help with this mei would be appreciated. I suspect it is KUNITADA and OKIMOTO is the only smith I could find with that name. Thanks.   

[Shugyosha]

Hi Neil,

 

I suspect that this is a slogan rather than a smith's name - anyhow the last kanji isn't "tada", it is read "on" and means benefit, favour or obligation. I can't find a match for the first kanji so you are going to have to have some better help than I can provide, but here are the others:

 

[  ]泥亦國恩

 

Best,

John

[IJASWORDS]

Thanks John, no wonder I couldn't find it in a list of sword smith oshigata. What are the two kanji before Kuni? Can I take it then the last two read kuni on? More help needed I am afraid. 

[Shugyosha]

亦 is pronounced "mata" meaning again, or also.

 

泥 pronunciation is "doro" meaning mud, slush, mire, dirt.

 

Yes, I believe the last two kanji are read "kuni" and "on".

 

Sorry about the shading...don't know where it came from.

[IJASWORDS]

A little help still required, thanks in advance. 

[Guido]

I think John got those 4 characters correctly, and as he, I'm at a loss for the first one. The only thing I can contribute is that 國恩 (kokuon) means "gratitude from the fatherland".

[SteveM]

The first one is a mystery... maybe a stylized version of 深, but that still doesn't lead me anywhere. 

[W K Clifford]

it is from a poem by 

頼山陽

 

 

畫　龜
既無神異智。　　既に神異の智なし
豈近廟廊尊。　　豈に廟廊の尊に近ずかんや
曳尾吾生足。　　尾を曳きて吾が生　足る
深泥亦国恩。　　深泥も亦た国恩

 

I will leave it to you to interpret what that means,   

[k morita]

Hi,

This inscription is a phrase of poem by Rai Sanyo 頼山陽(1781-1832).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rai_San%27y%C5%8D

This inscription says 深泥亦国恩 .
Meaning is "A tortoise doesn't have a big hope in the deep mud, but he feels favor for the country " 　

[W K Clifford]

Is it plausible to assume that this is a late Edo / early Meiji period sword, given how popular 頼山陽 was back then among intellectual reformers? The nakago does look the part, right? 

 

 

  On 10/4/2018 at 2:47 AM, k morita said:

Hi,

This inscription is a phrase of poem by Rai Sanyo 頼山陽(1781-1832).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rai_San%27y%C5%8D

This inscription says 深泥亦国恩 .
Meaning is "A tortoise doesn't have a big hope in the deep mud, but he feels favor for the country " 　

[IJASWORDS]

WOW, thanks for the translation and link. It is a beautiful sentiment expressed on a WW2 officer sword. 

[W K Clifford]

o

 

  On 10/4/2018 at 3:04 AM, IJASWORDS said:

WOW, thanks for the translation and link. It is a beautiful sentiment expressed on a WW2 officer sword. 

gunto also makes sense... 

[IJASWORDS]

Hi Yimu, it is a WW2 KATO JUMYO SAKU blade.