Handle from japanese.antiques

[troy8]

Bid on this on ebay a little on impulse. It is from a Japanese seller Japanese.antiques. The tsuka looks well wrapped but the color on the fuchi and kashira looks a little weird to me. Haven’t paid yet just wanted to know if this looked legit and if anyone has experience with the seller Japanese.antiques. Thanks

[Lorenzo]

You bid on the item and you won it?

Advice should be asked before and not later to be used as a proof for not paying a won item.

[estcrh]

Bid on this on ebay a little on impulse.

Well thats an honest statement, everyone here has done that I am sure at some point, can you post a link to the listing or paste the sellers description of this tsuka to see if it matches what you purchased.

[sanjuro]

If you have bid and won this item, there is little chance you can get out of paying for it unless it is not as described. If the color looked 'a little wierd' (Whatever that may mean), why did you bid on it? Why wait until now to ask advice? Basically, You took your chances when you started bidding.

[troy8]

Yeah I am an idiot and I plan on paying for it if it is not a total fake. Description

EDO Antique! "Tsuka" (SAMURAI KATANA Handle)

with Carved Dragon, "Botan (Peonies)" Motif

Wood & Copper

Condition Considering its age, it's in Good Condition.

(Refer to the pictures, please.)

Comment It is presumed to be made in the latter term of Edo era(1800-1870).

[sanjuro]

Well, that describes fairly accurately what you have bought if the pictures are anything to go by.

[micko]

i'll give you a tip be very carefull when buying from the Japanese on ebay

[Ian]

i'll give you a tip be very carefull when buying from the Japanese on ebay

 

I'm sorry I don't think that's always the case, but that's just my opinion!

 

 

Regards

[Lorenzo]

i'll give you a tip be very carefull when buying from the Japanese on ebay

 

This statement sounds a bit racist. Would you explain please?

[Brian]

No, I don't think it's racist, at least I hope not! I would make the same suggestion, for the following reasons:

For a while now, Japanese dealers have been aware of the Western market and the fact that low end stuff sells for high prices on eBay. There has been a huge increase in dealers unloading poor to low end stuff on eBay. Stuff that doesnt sell in Japan. We have all seen these dealers. Some of them even have nice looking items until you look very closely and see all of it is actually flashy but mediocre. These goods are mostly real and genuine, but nothing to write home about.

For that reason, I also say that you should be aware of what you are buying. We are currently the dumping ground for excess stock that no one else wants. That is not to say there aren't really nice items from Japanese dealers too, but you will spot those by their fair (higher) prices.

Yes, we have all seen exceptions, but any day of the week we can point out 100 low end items that wouldn't fetch $65 in Japan going for $150 or more on eBay.

 

As for this item, it appears as described and real. Nothing wonderful, but ok. Maybe rewrapped at some point? Ok to use as parts for a rebuild maybe.

 

Brian

[micko]

thanks brian you answered the question for me ,my wifes chinese i'm not racist,just be wary on ebay,i'll give you an eg.ivé seen Japanese dealers selling chinese rubbish as Japanese period swords.i myself bought a kozuka off a Japanese dealer that was sold to me as 100 years old that was lucky to be 10 years old but it looked the part in the photo,just be wary thats all.

[Grey Doffin]

I'll give you a tip; be very careful when buying from anybody on ebay

Grey

[estcrh]

Here is what Trevor Absolon from toraba.com has to say about Japanese dealers, Trevor has his business in Japan and has a lot of ties to Japan, this is from his guide to buying Japanese armor but it just as easily applies to all Japanese antiques. He bases his assessment on many years of experience. He is of the opinion that while some Japanese dealers are deceptive many just do not know anything about what they sell and it is up to the buyer to know the difference.

 

http://reviews.ebay.com/Protection-From ... 0004400504

 

 

Don't think that Japanese dealers are automatically honest and or experts on the subject of Japanese armour. In Japan the general rule with antiques is that if you as the buyer are no schooled enough in the items you are buying and you bought a fake because of that, then shame on you. Not on the person who deceived you. So if you think a reproduction kabuto helmet dates from the 18th century, in most cases the dealer won't try to correct your assessment. And returns are basically just not possible when it comes to antiques. People may think this is incorrect. Well folks, feel free to believe what you want. I’ve lived in Japan for almost half my life, and antiques are my business. I know how it works over here.

• There are of course decent dealers, who will tell you the truth, but the odds of hitting one of them amongst a crowd of dealers is definitely not the sort of risk you want to take.

• Note: There are only a handful of professional dealers who specialize in Japanese samurai armour in Japan. Of these a few are very devious, renowned for fabricating histories, altering the armours and doing whatever it takes to make a quick and easy buck. Foreigner customers are their favourite sting. Kyoto and Hiroshima are the hot spots for these guys so watch out!

• Most Japanese antique dealers simple have no experience in Japanese armour. It is such a select and limited field that most could not tell between a very decent replica and an original. So don’t think just because they are Japanese that they are automatically going to know this sort of thing. It’s like assuming all Europeans automatically know the difference between a Victorian period reproduction set of medieval armour and a real set from the 14th century. If you think this is true you are in trouble.

[Lorenzo]

I'll give you a tip; be very careful when buying from anybody on ebay

Grey

 

That's the point. It doesn't make a lot of sense to say that it depends on nationality.

 

Do you trust a seller to be honest and perfectly informed because of where he comes from? Or you don't exactly for the same reason?

 

You should instead be able to judge what you are bidding on for what it is.

[Brian]

Lorenzo,

No, I think it is a valid point, as people tend to lend a certain amount of trust automatically to the Japanese-based sellers. Yes, I agree that in a lot of cases the sellers just don't know themselves, but everyone who buys on eBay knows by now that mediocre junk is being dumped on eBay if it won't sell locally. It's not a case of "don't trust the Japanese" but be wary of mass Japanese-based listings for what seem like bargains.

Anyways, this is all logical and nothing new to discuss.

 

Brian

[Marius]

Do you trust a seller to be honest and perfectly informed because of where he comes from? Or you don't exactly for the same reason?

 

Location does make a difference. Tang or Sung antiques, sold for $50 or $100 from China. Would you buy them as genuine?

[kaigunair]

I would also agree that sellers in Japan get a "pass" because they're based in Japan. Its also interesting to note that many of the sellers located in Japan are not Japanese but transplants from the US, Europe, and Asia. Doesn't mean anything good or bad, just the truth.

 

Due to the Western perspective of Japan (say vs China, Africa, Eastern Block countries), there is a positive view, which is more for the culture and values as perceived by non-Japanese. Its an interesting comparison since the same pass isn't given to sellers based in other countries like the US and England. I wonder how much this is due to actual interaction with citizens from those countries, and how much of it is perceived or press influenced.

 

The warning is appropriate (since I hate seeing Japan-based sellers listing junk or worse, fakes, getting premium prices) and should not necessarily be considered racist, just cautionary.

 

Hey, I had a more positive view of those "over the pond" before joining boards like this... :D

[kaigunair]

one experience I share about my visit to Japan a few years ago for the first time to see family:

 

In tokyo, I saw lots of "urban" clothing stores (fubu, marc echo, etc). Not my thing, but what I noticed were the clerks or greeters in front of the store. I live in the San Francisco bay area, a very diverse place by any definition. Yet, there in the urban clothing stores in Japan was where I saw and met the most number of people from different African nations! Ghana, Nigeria, etc, it was the most hilarious thing I had ever seen and spoke volumes of the Japanese perspective of US urban life.

 

and and all at the same time....