Sword Identification help

[JohnL]

Hi all, 

 

I have just purchased the sword in the below images and I wonder if anyone could possibly help with translation and perhaps any other information as to its authenticity and quality? 

 

Many Thanks, 

 

John

 

[David Flynn]

Somewhere, (no) Ju Masahiro.

[JohnL]

Thank you David. As you can no doubt tell I am very much an amateur. Is there anything that might be indicative of the period this was forged in? 

[xiayang]

相州住正廣 = Sōshū jū Masahiro

 

Perhaps one of the later generations of the Muromachi era?

[JohnL]

Thanks very much guys, appreciate the input. Does anyone have any good resources for trying to find out more about the Smith? I've looked for other Soshu Masahiro mei to compare and none of them seem quite right. 

[SteveM]

There is a ton of great information in the FAQ link on the top of the page. Check out the section on recommended books. Henry Watson's translation of the "Nihon Toko Jiten" by Fujishiro is an excellent resource, as is The Connoisseur's Guide by Nagayama Kokan. There are book dealers here on this board who specialize in Japanese sword books. 

 

http://www.nihontomessageboard.com/faq.html

[JohnL]

Thanks Steve. I will look at the faq and your suggestions.

[JohnL]

Could anyone recommend a good book for learning about the Soshu tradition? I'd imagine there's a more than significant chance that the piece I bought is gimei but I'd like to use it as a starting point for research. 

 

Is there anything in the images that might point to this being Soshu or otherwise? I've attached some closer images in case those might help. 

[Rivkin]

The nakago looks like it was cleaned at some point, but the work is a very close match to one of the styles, the signature looks ok. Nakago is a bit off, but maybe its because its shobuzukuri waki.

I think it is highly likely to paper. Muromachi, Tembun and later.

[JohnL]

Thank you @Rivkin for the really interesting answer. Which style do you see it as a close match for? I'll see if I can find other examples of that style to compare.