Identification Help With Shore Patrol or Police Wakizashi

[DTM72]

I looked through my Fuller & Gregory and Dawson books, and have found some similar, but nothing matches what I picked-up this weekend. To me, it resembles a Navy Shore Patrol sword, but looking at the end of the handle for the anchor, it may have been removed by the owner, and some kind of number and inscription takes it's place. No anchor marking on the saya either. Wakizashi blade appears to be a repurposed shinto or shin-shinto blade with the nakago thinned down and threaded on the end. Nakago is signed Kanemoto. Blade has even light staining throughout, but hamon is visible.

 

Unique things about this one;

• Handle core is wood, wrapped in black leather ito, laid flat, butted tightly side-by-side and wound in a spiral around the core. No evidence of any wire wrap ever being on this.
• End of handle does not have a loop made onto the end cap, that hangs down for the attachment of a tassle. This has a small loop that holds a hanging brass ring.
• Saya is black wrinkle finish, not chrome. Appears to be original and not added later. Black covers the saya, the ashi and the rings of the ashi.
• The side of the tsuba folds and engages a pin on the saya...like a naval sword. All the Shore Patrol versions I have seen do not have this feature.

 

I'm open to opinions on this one. If I can't match it to the books, I don't know what to call it.

[DTM72]

Known Shore Patrol swords for comparison. Note the differences in the non-folding tsuba, the fuchi has the push button release and the tsuka end cap.

[Kiipu]

Hi Dan, the hilt markings consist of a kanji character followed by some numbers.  Will need a closeup of the kanji character so as to identify it.

一七六 = 176.

[DTM72]

Would you say this is a Shore Patrol variant or maybe an early model? @Kiipu

[DTM72]

Not expecting a miracle of translation since it is well-worn. Zooming in on the photo showed me the remains of the anchor, and the scratches from filing or sanding it down.

 

Just curious as to what it once said.

[DTM72]

Thoughts?

[Bruce Pennington]

All I can add is that there were a huge amount of variations of these swords, all before WWII.  You're probably right about it being a patrol sword.  It's quite unique though, with all the writing on the backstrap.

[Kiipu]

Well Dan, better late than never!  Maybe the first character is 空 [empty; sky; void; vacant; vacuum]?

[DTM72]

I sold this sword at the Las Vegas show earlier this year. Hopefully the new owner is enjoying it. Thanks for the info Thomas!

[BANGBANGSAN]

On 8/10/2022 at 6:43 AM, DTM72 said:

Thoughts?

空一七六