Nihonto in Paris?

[trygve]

Hello!

 

I am going on little trip to Paris (France) soon and wonder if there

are any museums, shops or exephitions with Japanese swords, armour etc.

 

I have found out that the place with Napoleons toomb have some Japanese armour.

 

Hope you french have some tips !!!

 

mvh

trygve

[Bruno]

Hi!

 

Try this:

 

http://www.espace4.com/antiquites-japon ... rs-10.html

Metro station ODEON

 

http://www.guimet.fr/

Metro station IENA

 

Enjoy!

[andreYes]

Besides, you can find small shops on flea markets.

I saw several on "Marche aux puces de St-Ouen" (rue des Rosiers, metro station Porte de Clignancourt)

[Jean]

Nothing great in Paris, you have also a shop within "Louvre des antiquaires"

 

Musée Guimet : 5/6 swords well polished, about 40 tsuba

Musée de l'Armée -Napoleon's tomb - metro Invalides - blades are awfull, some armours far from the Stibbert Museum in Firenze

[trygve]

Thanx for the input !

 

I will try to visit some of these places and hope to see something

of interest. with low expectations, I cant`t get disepointed.

 

Thanx again!

 

Regards

Trygve

[Jean]

In Musée Guimet, you have among these 5/6 swords polished by late Laurent Milhau, 2 Bizen swords : a Nagamitsu and a Sue Muromachi one

[IanB]

Jean, I love your brief comment about 'some armours' in the Musée de l'Armée. Did you know that two of these armours were given to Henri IV by Tokugawa Ieyasu and that another two were given to Mauritz Van Nassau by Tokugawa Hidetada? There were also swords and a naginata given to the French King which appear in the inventory of the Royal Collection. Those I can identify with some certainty are:

274; Une hallebard de sept pieds et demy de haut, don’t le bois est vernis de la chine par le haut,

et de bois de brèsil par en bas, le fer en manière de couttlas. (a naginata)

301; Un grand Espadon a la tartare, long de quatre pieds quatre pouces, don’t la poignee est

une couroye de cuir, la guarde de cuivre unie, le fourreau de bois vernis.

302; Deux Sabres a la tartare, les poignees de cuir, les guardes de cuivres avec ornemens aussi

de cuivre, les fourreaux de bois, l’un verny de noir avec fleurs, l’autre verny de rouge (the first may have been a saya with kamon)

303; Un sabre de trois pieds unze pouces de long, a guarde d’argent unie, la poignee de cuir,

le fourreau vernis de noir et point blancs. (sounds like a same nuri saya)

Whether these still exist somewhere in the collection I do not know since so many weapons were removed by revolutionaries and others. Nice to think that there may have been a Nihonto used at the storming of the Bastille.

Ian Bottomley

[myochin]

For armour, try:

 

Galerie Jean Christophe Charbonnier

52 rue de Verneuil

75007 Paris

http://www.artdujapon.org/jcc/

 

Paul.

[Jean]

In fact Ian, I don't know if they are exposed or in the reserves, or lost, but I can tell you for sure that :

 

- The swords are out of polish and that knowing nothing about armours there must be ten words comments about all of them for explanation on the corresponding "flier"

 

For the swords, I remember having seen at least one shin shinto, but nothing outstanding

 

The Museum is post Napoleon 1st.

 

For the Bastille, if I believe etchings that can be seen, they rather used Scythe or forks, hochos but not Masmune's :D

[IanB]

Jean, I'm afraid I have not seen the reserve collection at the Musée de l'Armée. What a pity the collection, and particularly the armour, is not better described. I have been in contact for years and the proper story does appear in books. You are probably correct about the attack on the Bastlle, on my reading of the affair it was guns the rebels were really after. Still it is nice to think they might have acquired one of the Japanese swords.

Ian

[Maurice_lmb]

Hello

 

I will be glad to show you 2 or 3 sword from my own collection if interested. and if scheduled with your trip.

Please PM.

 

Maurice

[Lindus]

Just a short drive from Paris is Angers, great little museum there with a selection of arms and armour, down the stree from it was a small Antique shop where some years ago I bought a very nice Kodzuka and Tanto for just a few Francs{Happy days}

Roy