The Return of the Umeki Family Sword

Keichodo · August 11, 2022

https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/society/general-news/20220705-42741/

Some of you may have seen the headlines announcing how a Japanese sword returned home several weeks ago to the Umeki family in southern Japan. The news story details Kevin Chroust’s successful account of returning a sword his grandfather had retrieved from a beach in Okinawa where a number of confiscated weapons had been piled up at the end of W.W. II hostilities. Although not mentioned in the news article, I can modestly say I played a small part in assisting Kevin to complete his mission. Kevin reached out to me several months prior to his journey to Japan through an introduction by Mark Jones. I offered advice pertaining to sword licensing and made arrangements for the sword to be licensed prior to Kevin’s arrival through my friend Hisashi Saito at Seikodo. With Kevin on and off during his Japan visitation, many experiences were enjoyed and the beer taps flowed. Memorable adventures included a visit to show the sword to Tanobe Sensei who corroborated my kantei of the sword as sue-koto. There were some Kashu features in the work, but Mr. Tanobe evaluated it as a Seki/Mino production and he suggested a couple of smiths. With this information Kevin and I travelled to Seki and we spent an afternoon in the Seki Sword Museum where much can be learned about this regional center of sword production. While in Seki, we visited the sword forge of the talented father/son Kanemichi smiths. On a blistering hot day, they fired up the forge to give Kevin an appreciation of summer heat… and hot iron: the full combination of earth, wind, water, and fire.

As we were in the area we also took in the Masamune exhibit at the Tokugawa Art Museum in Nagoya.

These were a few of the highlights that supplied a solid foundation for Kevin to understand the sword, prior to returning it to the Umeki family. By the way, Kevin is a journalist and no stranger to adventure. Read this account of his daring bull sprint in Pamplona, Spain. https://themorningnews.org/article/the-bull-passes-through

As you can see in the photograph, Tanobe Sensei, former director of research at the Tokyo sword museum, looks very well and has recovered from his serious traffic accident when he was knocked off his bicycle by a delivery truck. He has evolved from a walker to a cane, and now to pretty much free mobility. I have monitored his progress over several visits since the accident. Many years have passed since my first meeting with Tanobe Sensei in 1986 at the old sword museum, a fifteen minute walk from my apartment at the time in Shinjuku.

Prior to Kevin’s return to Denver, the full support cast assembled at TY Harbor Brewery on the Tokyo waterfront for an epic five hour session of sword banter and libations…. In the house was

renowned NY/Tokyo photographer Shina Peng. Check out her portfolio here: https://shinapeng.com/portfolio

Stay tuned for the full report as Kevin was on assignment for Outside Magazine and his fleshed out story will be coming our way in late November/early December with Shina’s photographs. Oh…. you might have to buy the magazine…. nobody rides for free!