Arsenal Stamps.

[Mark C]

Thanks Bruce, 

 

Very interesting, a mixture of suguha and wild, like mine.

[Kiipu]

4 hours ago, Bruce Pennington said:

... that small stamp on your seppa is the Nakano Shoten logo.

 

That would indicate the WARRIOR stamp was not that of a sword fitting shop then?

[Bruce Pennington]

8 hours ago, Kiipu said:

 

That would indicate the WARRIOR stamp was not that of a sword fitting shop then?

I'm guessing the stamp was of a forge, in a similar fashion to Amahide's Tan Rej Jo.  He had a hotstamp that has been seen on 4 other smiths' blades that worked at his forge.

 

Maybe @mecox can confirm that Yoshisuke and Yoshichika worked together at a single forge/shop?

[BANGBANGSAN]

On 8/21/2024 at 10:04 PM, GeorgeLuucas said:

That seems a likely scenario! Previously I had wondered about the possibility of suicide or hunger. I wonder how Marcus Sesko aquired his death-date, and if any other info was available.

You've caused me to go down a rabbit hole of the bombing campaign in July before the big bombs were dropped; very interesting! 

Thank you!
-Sam

If he died in July 9th 1945 insted of July 7th，then could be during the Gifu（where he work)air aids

昭和20（1945）年7月9日、今日も一日無事で終われると多くの人が思っていた午後11時頃、人々の思いを裏切り、ついに岐阜市にも米軍による空襲が行われた。

　空襲は数時間続き、約130機のB29が参加し、1万発以上の収束焼夷弾と焼夷弾が投下された。

空襲の目標点として、市街地の中心であった徹明通りと金華橋通りの交差する地点が設定されたため、街は瞬く間に火の海となり、多くの建物が焼け、約900人もの市民が犠牲となった。

On July 9, 1945 (Showa 20), around 11 p.m., when many people thought the day would end peacefully, Gifu City was finally subjected to an air raid by the U.S. military, betraying their expectations.

The raid lasted for several hours, involving around 130 B-29 bombers, which dropped more than 10,000 incendiary bombs and cluster incendiary bombs.

The target of the raid was set at the intersection of Temmei Street and Kinkabashi Street, which was the center of the city. In an instant, the city was engulfed in flames, with many buildings burned down and about 900 citizens losing their lives.

[BANGBANGSAN]

On 8/21/2024 at 10:04 PM, GeorgeLuucas said:

That seems a likely scenario! Previously I had wondered about the possibility of suicide or hunger. I wonder how Marcus Sesko aquired his death-date, and if any other info was available.

You've caused me to go down a rabbit hole of the bombing campaign in July before the big bombs were dropped; very interesting! 

Thank you!
-Sam

Or he was sent to China as a battlefield sword repair smith. Some of the smiths returned to Japan, while others died there.

[GeorgeLuucas]

42 minutes ago, BANGBANGSAN said:

If he died in July 9th 1945 insted of July 7th，then could be during the Gifu（where he work)air aids

Wow, thank you so much! That’s so interesting and paints a really dismal picture of Gifu that evening… It must have been a terrifying night. 
 

Much appreciated! It’s this history, and these kinds of stories that I find so fascinating about WW2 swords. I always learn a lot about more than just the blade. 
 

Thanks again,

Cheers,

-Sam

[PNSSHOGUN]

A curious stamp on a Showa era sword: https://page.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/m1157818593

[Bruce Pennington]

Wow, John, quite unique!  I'm posting it with the other kiku in the Stamps doc, though it's fairly likely not tied to shogunate work.  Makes me wonder after looking at them all if the kiku with stems and leaves were shogunate work or not as well.  That would mean going back to look a the smiths involved and possible dates.  Maybe someday.

[mecox]

John and Bruce, interesting blade and hamon.  I wonder if this stamp could be related to the Minatogawa Jinja Forge in Kobe, although this is katana-mei.   Example by Masanao in tachi-mei.  But artistically stamp could be sunset over a mountain??  Also different number of petals/rays.

 

[Kiipu]

A rising sun over Mount Fuji 富士山 with clouds or lake to the left?

[PNSSHOGUN]

The blade precludes any work by a serious Gendai Tosho, the Hada is quite.....vivid to say the least. Similar to the mixed metal works by the Amahide smiths.

 

 

[Bruce Pennington]

Anything is possible with this one.  I personally think it's handmade, and something put there for whatever value or good luck the kikusi brings to the blade/soldier.  

 

You can see two horizontal lines under Fuji, like you might see under a kiku, and I have other examples with less than the normal number of petals:

[3Jean]

On 3/3/2024 at 11:49 AM, Bruce Pennington said:

Wow, John! Good one! Will need to bring in the experts on this:

 

@Kiipu @SteveM @BANGBANGSAN

 

Minor Update:  Looks like I have this one on file from Aug '23.  Bbdear was selling it back then, but as far as I can tell, we never got this side translated.

Good morning,

I apologize for going so far back in this thread, but I just bought this particular sword, and i was wondering if you had any more info about it. I found the stamp in your 'Stamps' guide (very handy!) showing it to be a Toyokawa arsenal blade. Any idea when it was made? Conway S said it was stainless. Might be fun to collect all of the different types from the war era.

Thanks!

John

[Bruce Pennington]

1 hour ago, 3Jean said:

fun to collect all of the different types from the war era

Yes!  That's exactly what I did with my collection.

 

The stainless (anti-rust) blades were made all through the war, beginning in the mid/late '30s, so can't tell by that.  Looking at the tsuka, it's got lacquered leather or skin of some type.  I THINK that was later in the war, but still not definitive.  That's the best I can give you on that.  It's possible one of the other guys knows more about them.

[3Jean]

Thanks for responding Bruce! I still have a lot to learn about this stuff. The leather on the saya is kind of dried out in spots and cracking/splitting. Is it ok to use a leather restoration product on it or should I just leave it as is?

Best

John

[Bruce Pennington]

That's a personal choice.  If you search "preserve leather" or "leather preservation" you'll get a few discussions on the topic.  Several guys have had success using various products.  Here's one discussion:

 

These guys recommend Ren Wax

https://www.gunboard...403143#post-11403143

[3Jean]

I need to improve my search fu, thanks again Bruce!