Sho stamps

[Kevin]

I'd always understood that the sho stamp was discontinued in 1941-very early 1942. Which makes a shingunto signed by Kanetatsu (Tatsuo Kanemura) I picked up interesting. On the mei side of the nakago it has a sho stamp. However, on the other it has a very small Seki stamp (small enough to need a magnifying glass) and an inscription that dates it to Showa 20 nen 4 Gatsu i.e April 1945.

 

Anyone else run across sho stamps later than 1941/42?

 

Kevin

[outlier48]

I'd always understood that the sho stamp was discontinued in 1941-very early 1942. Which makes a shingunto signed by Kanetatsu (Tatsuo Kanemura) I picked up interesting. On the mei side of the nakago it has a sho stamp. However, on the other it has a very small Seki stamp (small enough to need a magnifying glass) and an inscription that dates it to Showa 20 nen 4 Gatsu i.e April 1945. Kevin

 

Kevin - I am curious where you learned that Showa-to stamps were discontinued by early 1942. I gleaned from "Modern Japanese Swords and Swordsmiths From 1868 to the Present" that in 1937 Japanese military authorities decided all non-tamahagane made swords were to be stamped to distinguish them from traditional swords. From 1940 through the end of the war this became mandatory. I think it may be possible to find a pre-1940 Showa-to without a stamp.

 

Charlie Brashear

[drdata]

I had the same understanding, but after this post I noticed that ryujin's swords seems to imply that show stamps were phased out in favor of arsenal stamps in the date range indicated:

 

"The Showa stamps were superseded in late 1941-early 1942 by the various arsenal marks. . . ."

 

 

http://www.ryujinswords.com/shostamp.htm

[outlier48]

Harry - thanks for the correction.

 

Charlie Brashear

[Kevin]

Well, finally solved it. It's a Gifu or Chimata stamp. Looks like a sho stamp, but much smaller, which makes it difficult to read. Thanks to Bruno, John Stuart and George Trotter for their research and the info. :-D

 

Kevin

[outlier48]

Kevin, can you post some pics?

 

Charlie Brashear

[Bruno]

Kevin, can you post some pics?

 

Charlie Brashear

 

Here is one close up: