Please, Advice and Comments Sought on my Father's Sword

[Jim]

Please excuse my ignorance if I use terms incorrectly, but I am a complete novice.

 

My father was a squadron commander in the US Army Air Force during the war. When it ended he took a job with Northwest Orient Airlines running an office for them in Kyoto to get the airline rights to start service between the US and Japan which it did in 1947. When he left the office he managed, one of his employees gave him an old sword.

 

Before my father passed away, he gave me this sword and I have always wanted to know more about it. From what I have been able to read on the internet I have learned that it should be called a Wakizashi because of its short length of 26.5 inches. I have also learned that it is in a plain wooden scabbard with matching handle that is called a shirasaya or sleeping scabbard, and that the markings on the tang are called kanji and should be the smith's name and clan and possibly other bits of information. It has a fairly plain brass (bronze?) hibaki (the little metal sleeve) and it is in a silk bag with blue/purple colored tassels. The bag has a white silk lining and both have fine detail work woven in.

 

Several years ago I took it to a guns and swords show and no one could tell me very much about it other than it had little value and they offered me anywhere from $50 to $300 for it.

 

In reading through many of the postings on this forum I am hoping to learn things like the approximate age of the blade; what the kanji say such as who was the maker - assuming one can trust them; and, is this just an ordinary working blade of minimal value or is it something more - I do not expect it to be a super high quality blade but it seems to be very well made to my untrained eyes. I have read about having blades sent to Japan for experts to examine and receiving documents to certify them - would a blade like this be worth asking such experts to take their time to examine it and would it be worth the the cost to me to have this done? Or anything else you can tell me?

 

Thank you.

Jim

 

I am attaching some photos - please let me know if you need any additional photos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[pcfarrar]

Maybe Bungo smith Fujiwara Sadayuki?

[Grey Doffin]

Hi Jim,

The signature reads, I think, "Fujiwara Sadatsugu". Fujiwara is a clan grouping (not exactly but as close as I can come in English) and Sadatsugu would be the smith's name. It is a wakizashi in shirasaya. The habaki is 2 piece and looks like it used to be covered in soft metal foil. The blade is in great shape; you've taken good care of it. Check the links at the top of the page to find a care and etiquette brochure that will tell you what you need to know to keep it nice.

My guess, without resorting to references, is mid Edo era, maybe18th century. Unless you're convinced you have a treasure and wish to sell it there is no reason to send it to shinsa. Keep it, keep it well, and enjoy.

Now, someone else can write in to tell you how wrong I am.

Grey

[Mark]

I agree with Grey. It is worth more than $50-300 but not thousands of $ (in my opinion)

[Jamie]

26.5 inches would be considered a katana wouldn't it?

[Brian]

Wow..all of this info within an hour :D

I think he meant the overall length, not the blade length.

Jim, it has been shortened slightly from the bottom up..not an uncommon thing to see but explains the positioning of the kanji.

Yep..nice condition, and a pleasure to see one not rusted and battered. You did well preserving it.

 

Brian

[Gregc]

Nice piece. You did well, IMO, not to let it go cheap at the gun show. Shame on them! Wonderful piece to keep and hand down, should you desire to.

[Jim]

Thanks to everyone for the education so far. No one will hurt my feelings if they say this wakizashi is only an ordinary blade, I would like to know what it is and what it is not. I place a personal value on it because it is from my father, but I also place a high value on knowing the facts.

 

So what I am hearing so far it was made by a smith named Sadatsugu who was in the Fujiwara clan, and that it was most likely made sometime during the 1700s. It is a wakizashi in that the overall length is 26 and a half inches, but that includes the tang. The habaki was made in two pieces (now that you point this out I can see it) and it may have originally been covered in a metal foil. It is in nice condition and it might have a value in the range of $1,000 give or take a few hundred.

 

Was this smith, Fujiwara Sadatsugu, recorded in the lists of smiths in Japan during the 1700s, or was he just an ordinary smith that did not make it into the records?

 

Is the straight temper line typical of this era?

 

Thanks for pointing out the FAQs on caring for it and the etiquette - I have downloaded those now and I will definitely care for it according to the procedures laid out there.

 

Please keep the information coming - I very much appreciate your generosity in teaching me about this blade.

 

Jim

[Grey Doffin]

Hi Jim,

With the signature "Fujiwara Sadatsugu" one would expect a smith working in Bungo, both a Province of Japan and a school/style of smithing. Hawley's big brown book lists 2 Sadatsugu in Bungo who might be your smith, with dates in the 16th and 17th centuries. Could be; could be not. Hard to tell for sure. If someone can come up with a signature in one of the references that matches then you'd know for sure. Shy of that he's just a little known or unknown smith.

Suguba (straight hamon) is commonly seen.

I think $1,000 is a bit high for this sword. Of course I haven't seen it but I would expect it to be priced closer to half that at a sword show here in The States.

Anyone else know more?

Grey

[estcrh]

Put it on Ebay..you might get thousands from an unsuspecting novice!! On a serious note, here is a Japanese sword glossary link which might help you. http://members.shaw.ca/nihontonut/glossary.html

[Stephen]

  Quote

Put it on Ebay..you might get thousands

 

he might well its a nice unit.

[Mark Green]

Nice sword Jim.

 

I looked quick through the Bungo-to. Couldn't find any pics of the mei.

Looks like your sword was well kept. I would just keep it as is, and enjoy.

Bungo made swords were renown for their strength. A fighting mans sword.

Enjoy, Mark G

[nagamaki - Franco]

  Jim said:

It is a wakizashi in that the overall length is 26 and a half inches, but that includes the tang.

 

It is a wakizashi in that the cutting edge is less than 24" in length.

 

  Quote

SWORD BLADES CLASSIFIED BY LENGTH - see the following link http://home.earthlink.net/~steinrl/measure.htm

[estcrh]

  Jamie said:

26.5 inches would be considered a katana wouldn't it?

Excellent link on historical sword lengths.

 

http://www.una.edu/faculty/takeuchi/DrT ... of_wak.htm

[Jamie]

Eric, Thanks.

I just missed that his measurement was overall length. I was thinking Nagasa for some reason. Even though the pic is clearly a wak.

[Jim]

Thank you everyone for your advice on my wakizashi - I very much appreciate your sharing your expertise. I have been trying to teach myself the correct terms by reading the glossary and the FAQs that are made available here on this website, as well as starting to read articles published elsewhere on the web.

 

I think my one last question at this point is to ask if there is any way to narrow down the timeframe and smith. What I understand so far is that its maker was a Bungo smith named Fujiwara Sadatsugu, and he may have worked sometime in the late Koto or during the Shinto periods (1500s, 1600s, or the 1700s). From your comments I understand that there are two smiths by this name noted in the reference lists (one who worked in the 1500s, and one who worked in the 1600s), but no one knows what their mei or blades look like. Also it could be an entirely unknown and unlisted smith from those centuries, or even one working in the 1700s who made good quality, very sturdy blades designed for reliable use by a working samurai. Is there no way to narrow this down within this 300 year period?

 

Thank you again for your kind patience in teaching me.

 

Jim

[outlier48]

Shinsa?

 

Charlie Brashear

[xxlotus8xx]

Hi Jim,

You know the smith, and period of the smith and the region. I would compare your waki's to other of around the same timeframe and region. There are several examples of how to measure sword's characteristics and from these measurements you can compare to swords that are documented. This might help.

[nagamaki - Franco]

Hi, might be helpful, The Japanese Sword ;Guide to Nyusatsu Kantei http://www.thejapanesesword.com ISBN 159603026-7