Help Please new Sword in Tachi Koshirae

[BRUNROX]

Greetings ! I found this Sword over the week-end at a local show, and could not resist the temptation of giving it a new home . I'm seeking help in the translation of the Kanji , after hours of looking at books and counting Kanji strokes, I was only able to vaguely understand three of them...., Second symbol = "Ba" , Fourth = "Ichi or Kazu" , Fifth = "Hira or Taira",

last one seems to resemble "Saku" but not sure about that either. Your comments and help are very much appreciated.

 

Best Regards, Mario P.

[cabowen]

Ippei Yasuyo is the smith. Very well know. This appears to me to me gimei and the nakago looks strange, maybe burnt???

 

一平安代

[drbvac]

Any other pictures>?

[Mark]

from the pictures it looks like a tachi from early Showa, i have seen several and many have Showa period Gimei blades with big Shinto and shinshinto names

[BRUNROX]

Thank You all for the replies, added more quick pics. per some requests, and another one of the Nakago. As you can see the blade needs to be taken care of, many spots with rust build up. Regards, Mario P.

[Grey Doffin]

I don't think the nakago has been burnt, but it does look 20th century, possibly with some chemical patina to add age. You see swords like this from time to time, some with gimei to an older smith and others with honest Showa-to. Were they made for Western tourists or for the Japanese market; anyone know?

Grey

[sanjuro]

Hi.

 

As far as I know, many were made to be presented to retiring officials in the government. Also as retirement or special presentations for services rendered to higher ranking army officers. Sort of like a gold watch in the Western world. Definately not meant for the European market. This is probably the most common pattern found outside of Japan so no doubt many were confiscated during the occupation. Some of these actually have quite nice traditionally made blades.

The colour of the tsuka ito tells you what branch of the services or public service the recipient was associated with. This one, because of its leather obi and brown (I think) tsuka ito would most likely have been an army infantry officer. The fittings were usually brass - silver washed or sometimes foiled if the recipient was of high standing. On some the Oseppa are shakudo. Although the kanagu are all of the same general pattern, they vary greatly in quality from sword to sword according to the rank of the recipient. I have a similar one with a solid silver foiled tsuba and fittings and green tsuka ito. I'm not positive what the green denotes, but I have been told it was the army engineers.

[george trotter]

I have seen a number of these "big name" tachi also. I have seen Rai Kunitoshi, Nagasone Okimasa, Sasaki Ippo, Minamoto Kiyomaro...

In one case the sword was presented to a port city here who assisted a Japanese naval squadron in some way prior to WWII. As the members say, there are various stories as to why such swords are given...it seems to be that sword is intended to be a token that you "deserve" a Kiyomara etc for what you have done for us /our appreciation is at the "level" of a Kiyomaro etc.

All had the silver washed brass as mentioned above, and one had the Ho (?) bird hilt of Efu-no-tachi. Only the Okimasa had superior lacquer (red-orange) and fittings and I think this went back to Japan with a 1980s buyer named Nakayama. All had the "look" of Showa work to me (except Okimasa which was superior) but were in the more or less correct style for the maker/period. I don't class these as forgeries, bur copies not intended to deceive.

IMHO,

George.