Shin Gunto with a straight blade ..

[Butch]

Received this Shin Gunto today with a straight blade ?

I have been told it was a bring back sword from Burma.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

[Butch]

Some more pics sorry they are not the best .

 

.o

[Stephen]

Best to show sugata with no fittings.

Signed Masakuni... haven't worked the date.

My guess Shinshinto blade.

[Butch]

Thanks Stephen will take some pics in better light tomorw .

Gareth 

[Stephen]

The latter paragraph may be what you have. Royalists like to carry straight blades.

[Stephen]

“Inoue Masakuni” (井上正国)  1860s?

possible but dates are off 

MASAKUNI (正国), Genji (元治, 1864-1865), Iyo – “Imabari-jū Masakuni” (今治住正国), real name “Ono Tomoji” (斧友治), he also bore the first name Tomojirō (友二郎) and was the son of the Bunka-era (文化, 1804-1818) Iyo Ono Kunimasa (国正), he studied under Suishinshi Masahide (水心子正秀) and Ozaki Masataka (正隆)

 

MASAKUNI (正国), Bunkyū (文久, 1861-1864), Musashi – “Efu ni oite Minamoto Masakuni saku” (於江府源正国作), “Bishū-san Mizuno Masakuni Bufu ni oite kore osaku” (尾州産水野正国於武府作之, “made by Mizuno Masakuni, born in Owari, in Edo”), “Mizuno Hideshirō Masakuni” (水野秀四郎正国), “Bishū Mizuno Masakuni” (尾州水野正国), real name Mizuno Matsujirō (水野松次郎), he came originally from Owari but moved eventually to Edo where he became a student of Hosokawa Masayoshi (正義), it is said that he worked later also in

[Kiipu]

文久四年 = 1864.

[BANGBANGSAN]

備州住井上正國 
文久四年正月日 於赤（石？）造之

[Stephen]

Want to translate that guys...for us old folk.

[Butch]

I am new to this hobby but I haven’t seen a straight sword before are they rare ?

Many thanks Gareth

[Stephen]

In a certain time they were the fad...read up some more. 

[Butch]

Thanks Stephen 

I friend of mine just sent me this ..

[Kiipu]

備州住井上正国 = Bishū jū Inoue Masakuni.

[Stephen]

Not Bishu more like Sakushu

[Stephen]

[Kiipu]

作州 = Sakushū.

Mimasaka Province

 

作州住井上正国 = Sakushū jū Inoue Masakuni.

 

Attention @SteveM

[Stephen]

Is that your way of saying yep im wrong. 😂 😆

[Stephen]

Found he also signed Masayoshi.

Check Pertinent time...here.

https://markussesko.com/2015/04/03/kantei-1-sugata-6/

 

[SteveM]

I've been following this thread and it's a bit of a conundrum to me. It sure looks like Sakushū-jū Inoue Masakuni on the omote. And the date of January 1864 is fine, but that bit after the date is also something I haven't been able to figure out. The first character after the date doesn't strike me as 於, but I have no plausible alternative to offer. (Well, it looked to me like 八赤百, but that doesn't make any sense, so I've been sitting on the sidelines). Very sad to say I have nothing of much value to contribute to the discussion. 

 

Meikan more?

Or an early work of our man Inoue Masakuni from Ashū (阿州), and maybe he was apprenticed in, or working around Mimasaka at the time, and this bit didn't get recorded? That would be my hypothesis for now. 

[Butch]

Thank you for all your help and comments ..

Do you often see straight blades in Shin Gunto wartime mounts ?

Many thanks Gareth 

[PNSSHOGUN]

Hi Gareth, not that common. Here is one with a blade likely from the Kanbun era, with virtually no Sori in the blade.

 

[Dave R]

Looking at their popularity with Imperialists I suspect a bit of "historismus", a deliberate reference/homage  to the very old style chokuto blades.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chokutō

[Stephen]

Gareth 

Are we seeing the sword today?

 

[Butch]

Stephen minor family hick up today will take pics in the morning ...

Sorry Gareth 

[Stephen]

Family first mate, we're not going anywhere.

[Butch]

Here are some quick pics 

There blade cutting length is 28,1/4inches in length 

[Butch]

There is no curve at all in this blade it is totally straight ..

Sorry Stephen rushing a bit and the handle is a bugger to get off !!!!!

[Stephen]

We have seen the nakago thanks for pic.

Deff loyalist blade as I posted in Monday at 3:10 pic.... Pretty cool you don't find them very often. 

[Stephen]

Maybe couple more of kissaki and hada if you can capture?