Should all quality antique Japanese Matchlocks have a signature?

[Alex A]

As per title, asking because i don't know.

 

I'm assuming guns off the castle rack, probably not.

 

 

[Bugyotsuji]

The quick answer is no, not necessarily, Alex. 

[Alex A]

That's good to hear, Piers.

 

Kind of unusual to hear for me, as in comparison to European guns where a name on a piece seems to be the first thing folks look for.

 

Thinking about it, European guns without a signature seem to pale into insignificance, don't even remember seeing that many without a name unless mediocre.

 

See plenty of cannon without a manufacturer, but heard the reason for a missing manufacturer name was to avoid any repercussions should it fail.

 

 

[Bugyotsuji]

There are no hard-and-fast rules, but if you think of the highest quality Kenjo Tsuba, many were not signed as it might have been impertinent to put your name on it. With guns, there were few outstanding gunsmiths of their time, and most are unknown, even if listed, but a finely-crafted gun bearing a name such as Nihon Kiyotaka (Hankei) would add enormous cachet to a gun today, if you could even find one. There are some other famous names, but comparatively few.