Amahide & Seki Nihonto Tanren Jo

[mecox]

If you are interested in WW2 Fukumoto Amahide, his Seki workshop and support tosho,  I have done a compilation and Brian has posted on Downloads.   Hope it will be of use. 

 

Mal

[PNSSHOGUN]

Great article Mal, thank you for putting it together. Just the other week I was digging up whatever I could find about Amahide and it was difficult to find anything really authoritative.....until now!

[mecox]

John, thanks and glad to hear that, which is what it is for.

Mal

[dwmc]

Mal,

I would like to thank you also. My father brought home a Amahide in 1946. Almost unbelievably, I purchased a Shin-gunto two years ago at an estate auction, only to discover it was also an Amahide. Both swords are signed with "kitau kore" which hopefully suggests traditionally forged.

Below is my estate purchase which is daisaku daimei Amahide by Ido Hidetoshi.

Excellent article!

Again...Thank you!!

Dave M.

 

[mecox]

Hi Dave,

thanks for comments.  That looks a very nice example.  Any chance you could post some pics (e.g. oshigata, hamon, kisskai) and I can file for an update.  Of both??

Mal

[Dave R]

20 hours ago, mecox said:

If you are interested in WW2 Fukumoto Amahide, his Seki workshop and support tosho,  I have done a compilation and Brian has posted on Downloads.   Hope it will be of use. 

 

Mal

 

 an you post a link, alas I cannot find the download.

 

[dwmc]

1 hour ago, mecox said:

Hi Dave,

thanks for comments.  That looks a very nice example.  Any chance you could post some pics (e.g. oshigata, hamon, kisskai) and I can file for an update.  Of both??

Mal

 

More than happy to provide photos Mal. These are not the best of pictures , but hopefully adequate.

The 1946 bring back is in possession of my younger brother, however, I do have oshigata photos. I'll provide it to you when I locate them

Thanks again,

Dave M.

[dwmc]

43 minutes ago, Dave R said:

 

 an you post a link, alas I cannot find the download.

 

 

Hi Dave, I think you can just click on "down loads" at the top of the page. It should be the first article under "whats new"

 

Dave M.

[mecox]

Yes its in NMB   Downsloads  https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/files/

 

Dave dwmc...thanks for the pics, I will store, and hopefully later do a "supplement".

Looks a very nice blade with some good activity.  I am intrigued that a number of these blades have 2 holes.

Be great if you can do the other one also.  cheers

Mal

[george trotter]

Hi Malcolm,

Just read your article on the Seki Nihonto Tanrenjo...very interesting. It makes identifying these blades here much easier. Many thanks.

Like those blades shown here, I have come across them myself in the past...do not have any now, but nice to read about them,

Regards,

George.

[Dave R]

Got it! On my version of NMB I have to click a button to open up some functions.

[Dave R]

12 hours ago, mecox said:

  I am intrigued that a number of these blades have 2 holes.

Mal

 

Repairs? Or were some originally in Showa era Buke Zukuri munts.

[PNSSHOGUN]

Sometimes I have wondered if some Koshirae makers did it, especially if they were using mass production methods and had pre made Tsuka.

[mecox]

3 hours ago, george trotter said:

Hi Malcolm,

Just read your article on the Seki Nihonto Tanrenjo...very interesting. It makes identifying these blades here much easier. Many thanks.

Like those blades shown here, I have come across them myself in the past...do not have any now, but nice to read about them,

Regards,

George.

Hi George

thanks glad it was helpful, but I cant match the curatorial precision you have used in the report of your treasures!  Thats a nice report.

Mal

[mecox]

34 minutes ago, PNSSHOGUN said:

Sometimes I have wondered if some Koshirae makers did it, especially if they were using mass production methods and had pre made Tsuka.

I wonder if it suggests a tsuka remount, as often the lower hole looks newer, as in post-filing?

Mal

[dwmc]

4 hours ago, mecox said:

I wonder if it suggests a tsuka remount, as often the lower hole looks newer, as in post-filing?

Mal

 

I think it was Chris Bowen that once mentioned something to the effect of "beware of a wwll era made swords with two mekugi-ana."

 

The day before the estate auction you were allowed to view items in which you may have been interested in bidding.

The sword pictured above, I noticed was in overall excellent condition, the son of the deceased owner of the sword was not allowing the tsuka to be removed, which concerned me somewhat, but could also understand him not wanting people to assemble and disassemble and so on.

 

I decided to roll the dice and bid on the sword  the next morning. Apparently, some one had convinvced the son to removed the tsuka and I was able to take a brief look at the nakago. I immediately noticed the two holes and should have been able to translate the inscription as an Amahide,  but couldn't for reasons I can't explain. Possibly due to the variations in signatures. The habaki was stuck tight and was going to be difficult to remove with out some work.

 

I've managed to make a short story long and apologize, but I can't help but feel this is all part of an on going story of a sword which began in a Seki sword factory in the 1930's or 40's. After I won the bid and got the sword home and managing to get my eyes realigned, I realized the inscription was Amahide, which was amazing on account of my fathers bring back being an Amahide also.

 

On to the two holes and the habaki . It took a while to gently remove the habaki , but when I eventually succeeded, the two holes were glaringly explained.

This was machi-okuri due to a forging flaw moved from the blade to the nakago. I'm sure as suggested by others there are many reasons for these Showa era two hole nakago's, but in this case, as Dave R. suggested...a repair!

 

Regards,

 

Dave M.

 

[Dave R]

3 hours ago, dwmc said:

 

I think it was Chris Bowen that once mentioned something to the effect of "beware of a wwll era made swords with two mekugi-ana."

 

The day before the estate auction you were allowed to view items in which you may have been interested in bidding.

The sword pictured above, I noticed was in overall excellent condition, the son of the deceased owner of the sword was not allowing the tsuka to be removed, which concerned me somewhat, but could also understand him not wanting people to assemble and disassemble and so on.

 

I decided to roll the dice and bid on the sword  the next morning. Apparently, some one had convinvced the son to removed the tsuka and I was able to take a brief look at the nakago. I immediately noticed the two holes and should have been able to translate the inscription as an Amahide,  but couldn't for reasons I can't explain. Possibly due to the variations in signatures. The habaki was stuck tight and was going to be difficult to remove with out some work.

 

I've managed to make a short story long and apologize, but I can't help but feel this is all part of an on going story of a sword which began in a Seki sword factory in the 1930's or 40's. After I won the bid and got the sword home and managing to get my eyes realigned, I realized the inscription was Amahide, which was amazing on account of my fathers bring back being an Amahide also.

 

On to the two holes and the habaki . It took a while to gently remove the habaki , but when I eventually succeeded, the two holes were glaringly explained.

This was machi-okuri due to a forging flaw moved from the blade to the nakago. I'm sure as suggested by others there are many reasons for these Showa era two hole nakago's, but in this case, as Dave R. suggested...a repair!

 

Regards,

 

Dave M.

 

 

 I had a traditional bladed gunto mounted sword with that very same issue. 

[george trotter]

On 11/14/2020 at 8:40 PM, mecox said:

Hi George

thanks glad it was helpful, but I cant match the curatorial precision you have used in the report of your treasures!  Thats a nice report.

Mal

Hi Mal.

Thanks for your kind words....yes detailed (you should see my notes!) but I did it as we owe it to the sword community to leave as detailed information as possible behind us...as you have done with your very meticulous publications...which I use still. So a big thank you to you. (speaking of your Mino book...you must have noticed my comments/guess on sword #10 in my article...maybe Aizu 11 gen Kanesada (or not) haha).

 

Actually, I mean to comment of the topic here about the two holes in a WWII tang, I have to admit that I have seen this a number of times, but never thought to check for a kizu correction machi okuri job as the reason...so thanks for that observation...also this discussion...never too old to hear fresh ideas.

Regards all,