Tanto help request - Bishu Ju Yasumitsu

[KH195]

Hello all, complete novice here but looking to learn. I acquired this tanto from a coworker, he had inherited it from his grandfather but had no interest in it. A member on another board was kind enough to translate the signature for me as “Bishu Ju Yasumitsu”. While researching I came across this thread: http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/4042-help-with-mei-bishu-ju-yasumitsu/with a katana signed in a similar manner, and it seems opinion was that the signature was gimei, as Yasumitsu would have included “Osafune” in the mei. Hoping someone could shed some light on exactly what I have here and if my tanto could be gimei as well. Would love to know what era/period it dates to if anyone is able to provide that info from my not-so-great photos. Nagasa is 28.5cm. I have no interest in it’s value or selling, just looking for info and I am extremely fascinated by the idea of owning a blade that could be quite old, gimei or not. Many thanks in advance for any assistance!

Regards,

Kris H.

[ROKUJURO]

KH195,

what is your name please? 

Signing TANTO is sometimes different because of the limited space on the NAKAGO. Generally said: The shape of your TANTO is consistent with some late KOTO blades, while the MEI with the special YASU character is not the same as the OEI BIZEN SHODAI used.

Have a look: http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/4042-help-with-mei-bishu-ju-yasumitsu/   and 

https://www.aoijapan.net/dai-sho-bishu-osafune-yasumitsunoushu-seki-kaneie-not-gurantee

[SteveM]

Hello Kris,

 

There are a few Yasumitsu smiths, and a few who are from Bishū. I couldn't find the exact match "Bishū-ju Yasumitsu", but this isn't uncommon. I only mention this because sometimes the omission of a word (国 kuni, for example) can be significant. 

Yours might be one of the top 4 on this page.

https://nihontoclub.com/view/smiths/meisearch?type=All&mei_op=contains&mei=%E5%AE%89%E5%85%89

and then again maybe not. Gimei are common, and there is the possibility that yours is gimei as well. 

 

Having said that, I like the looks of your tantō. It could very well be in the neighborhood of 500 years old. It is begging for a professional polish, and that would tell you a lot more about whether or not this is a high quality tantō. In my opinion, this one is worth spending some time and effort on. 

[Ken-Hawaii]

It's hard to be sure, but I see what might be mokume hada, & I'm intrigued that one of your ana looks drilled, while the other appears chiseled, both of which pushes your blad well into Koto. I wouldn't worry much about the mei, as it's one of the last things to consider. Yes, a polish is appropriate, & I suggest contacting Woody Hall <hawaii.togishi@yahoo.com> to get an estimate. In the meantime, please make sure that you keep a fine film of oil on the blade (check out http://www.nbthk-ab.org/Etiquette.htm).

 

Welcome aboard, Kris!

[KH195]

Thank you all so much for the replies thus far, your expertise is greatly appreciated! I will certainly look into a polish, I had initially considered that when I received the blade but since I am a true beginner with nihonto I had no idea if it would be worth it or not with this particular example.