Help to Attribute Wakizashi (Period/Region/Smith)

[quoshy]

Hello everyone,

 

I'm looking for assistance in attributing my wakizashi. Specifically, I'm looking for help in determining the time period, region and ideally a smith for the wakizashi in the attached pictures. I've been collecting and studying Japanese swords for a few years now and this is to further my own understanding and not for commercial purposes. I can usually narrow down a time period and region on my own but this one has me stumped. My favorite part is the boshi but I also find it confusing to attribute. Apologies for the imperfect state. Any advice, insights or otherwise are greatly appreciated.

 

Measurements: 

Motohaba: 2.8cm

Sakihaba: 2.0cm

Motokasane: 0.55cm

Nagasa: 49.2cm

Sori: 1.0cm

 

Other information:

Boshi: Kaen (hakikake)

Yasurime: Kiri

Hamon: Midare (ish?) Nie-deki

Jihada: ko-itame (I think)

 

 

Higher res pics here: https://imgur.com/a/1gSxnrJ

[TheGermanBastard]

mishina school .... late Edo

[Rivkin]

Very personal guesses:

Very pronounced fumbari, with some sori - probably around 1660. The bands of nie is one of the more popular styles of the period, and its hard to be precise without seeing the kaeri in particular, some hada etc would help as well.

I would say from what is seen in the boshi, it kind of goes after Inoue Shinkai. But you do find similar things even in Edo Hojoji.

 

Kirill R.

[quoshy]

Awesome! Thanks guys. That's helpful to do some more digging on my own. I'll try to get a picture of the hada as well.

[Rivkin]

Basically my take is that wide bands of nie, separating from the rest of the hamon and kind of sitting on top of gunome peaks and being very obvious in boshi - that's a common Kambun Soshu interpretation. You don't see them so pronounced as stripes per se earlier in Kunihiro's time, and in shinshinto the interpretation is more Masahide based, not so much long stripes, as ara nie, Satsuma jigane etc.

In a related style, Kotetsu, Shinkai are the big names, but a lot of followers or even predecessors. Hojoji, others included.

But I am not that good in shinto schools.

 

Kirill R.

[Jacques D.]

Hummm...

[Ken-Hawaii]

Welcome to NMB. Please sign all posts with you first name, so we know how to address you.

 

It's much easier to estimate jidai on a katana, even if it's o-suriage Wakizashi are more difficult unless they're ubu, but even then, many tosho were trying for an older look, so it's never cut-&-dry.

 

I suggest you take a look at NMB member Markus Sesko's excellent https://markussesko.com/kantei/ You'll notice that the first 8 parts to the series are dedicated to sugata, more than any other topic.

[Geraint]

Dear Kirill.

 

As I understand the term fumbari refers specifically to a pronounced tapering over a short length of the blade from the machi, seen in ubu early swords.  I don't think I see that here though I do see pronounced, even taper from machi to yokote.

 

All the best.

[quoshy]

Thanks for the additional help and apologies for not signing my previous post.

 

Scott

[Ken-Hawaii]

Funbari IS the tapering from yokote to machi, Scott.

[Jacques D.]

Funbari IS the tapering from yokote to machi, Scott.

 

No, Geraint is right

 

https://markussesko.com/2015/02/19/kantei-1-sugata-2/

[Ganko]

It is kind of like bell bottom pants. :-)

[Geraint]

OOOHH!  I remember those!  

 

Violet as I recall.

 

All the best.

[16k]

Funbari IS the tapering from yokote to machi, Scott.

Funbari see,s to be a very complex and difficult to use word. It would seem that "real" funbari applies to older blades, pre Muromachi, where near the Habaki, the is a sudden enlargement of the blade. However, some people, and among them supposed scholars of nihontō, also use it even in books to speak of the general tapering of the blade from machi to kissaki. so maybe it is used because of a lack of specific word? A rare instance in Japanese nihontō study where an excess of Precise vocabulary seems to be the norm.

 

Whatever, I personally use "funbari" in the first instance and just "tapering" in the second one to avoid confusion. But Ken, I understand your use of it. 

 

EDIT: for example, even in this book by an authority like Yoshindo Yoshihara, it is used in the machi/kissaki meaning. Then an excerpt from Nihontō.com where it refers to the first meaning. So a confusing term that can, I guess, be understood in both ways.

 

Here is also a translation from a French source:

Except in truly exceptional cases, all sword blades have a saki haba  narrower than the moto haba. This difference can sometimes be quite significant and some authors call it funbari. In fact, the funbari 踏ん張り - which could be translated as "resistance" - is a marked increase in blade width a few centimeters from the machi. The ashi wofunbaru (bow on his legs) is a good illustration of the feeling of a man camped on his wide legs that the funbari gives. This is a feature on the end of Heian to early Kamakura  blades which, of course, have not been shortened.

 

I think this excerpt shows the confusion quite well.

[Rivkin]

I am seldom the right person to argue about the terminology - because usually I am in the wrong!

This being said, the 5cm definition of fumbari works only for really early blades. Kambun fumbari is however a sentence widely used, even though it refers to the tapering which occurs more or less uniformly within the lower half of the blade. 

The complication here is that I suspect the lens is wide angle, and the picture is taken off-center, which creates significant distortion towards the kissaki. So its very hard for me to say how much of tapering really continues past the mid point.

In any case it does have taper, which does exclude quite a number of periods.

 

Kirill R.

[Ken-Hawaii]

Yiou hit it, JP. Thanks!