Tibetman18 Posted January 2 Report Posted January 2 Hello everyone, I recently purchased this sword and wanted to put some pics out there to see if anyone can ballpark the date of this blade. The seller listed it as an older tachi in gunto mounts. Any info is greatly appreciated. Thanks Quote
RobCarter3 Posted January 2 Report Posted January 2 This used to be my sword! I traded it to a well-known member of the military swords Facebook group for a kai gunto kanemichi showato some months ago. I acquired it from a different FB group member about a year before. The blade is suriage or o-suriage mumei. I always believed it was sue koto. There is a single togari-ba element on the omote side (otherwise suguha), so possibly Mino den? The tsuba is the good early-style large/thick version. Glad this sword found its way into good hands. Your pics are better than mine! 1 1 Quote
Tibetman18 Posted January 2 Author Report Posted January 2 Wow thanks for the info Rob! Such a small world! With you having had it in person and able to look it over, what kind of age would you estimate on this blade? Quote
Bazza Posted January 2 Report Posted January 2 RobCarter3 wrote: > There is a single togari-ba element on the omote side (otherwise suguha), so possibly Mino den? A picture is worth a thousand words. A single togari-ba element - is there a name for such a feature?? BaZZa. Quote
RobCarter3 Posted January 2 Report Posted January 2 5 hours ago, Bazza said: RobCarter3 wrote: > There is a single togari-ba element on the omote side (otherwise suguha), so possibly Mino den? A picture is worth a thousand words. A single togari-ba element - is there a name for such a feature?? BaZZa. No longer owning the sword, this is the best I can do. 1 Quote
Geraint Posted January 2 Report Posted January 2 Dear All. One description of Mino den suguha describes them as always having fushi or thickets somewhere in the hamon so perhaps that would be the description here. All the best. 1 Quote
Bruce Pennington Posted January 2 Report Posted January 2 10 hours ago, Tibetman18 said: what kind of age would you estimate on this blade? Alex, Rob said "sue Koto" so: Sword Eras SUE KOTO The end of the era of old swords is generally considered to be the Oei Period(1394). Swords produced after this era are referred to as SUE KOTO or late old swords. With the onset of the Oei period, Japan suffered through a series of civil wars. During this period, the quality of sword making fell off due to the great demand for weapons. Many mass produced blades from the era survive due to the great numbers produced. Private order blades were of finer quality. However, blades from this era seldom rivaled the quality of earlier work. The end of civil war brought an era of peace to Japan. The unification came under the rule of the Tokugawa Shoguns, who moved the center of politics from Kyoto to their home city of Edo, which is today modern day Tokyo. The end of the era of Koto is generally established to coincide with the rise of the Tokugawa in the Keicho era, which began in 1596. (From: Warrelics - A Brief Introduction to Sword Making Eras) 1 Quote
Tibetman18 Posted January 2 Author Report Posted January 2 This is amazing info, thank you all for replying! The age of these swords always amazes me, and I appreciate the knowledge of the people on this board! 1 Quote
Bazza Posted January 3 Report Posted January 3 23 hours ago, Geraint said: Dear All. One description of Mino den suguha describes them as always having fushi or thickets somewhere in the hamon so perhaps that would be the description here. All the best. More on this subject when I get a sword back from lending out to a mate... BaZZa. 1 1 Quote
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