Gimei or refined signitures?

[Daddoo]

Hello all,

I have been researching my first nihonto and have come across my first difficult question. How much can a smiths mei change over time? On looking at 6 or 7 examples several problems pop up. First, there are many different variations of his name written (at least with Umetada Dansaburo). Second, location of the mei (all appear to be similar). Third, direction of the strokes (in the character "Hira" the small center strokes upward or downward angle). And overall character in general (addition of additional strokes or removal of some). In this case, most of the examples I have looked at have stroke variations in the opposite direction from my piece with the exception of his older work, and more character strokes then in some older work. Is it common for this to be so? I do apologize for my lack of knowledge as to the names of various parts of the mei, I am working on it, and for the lack of photo examples. I am having issues with my photo software. Thank you in advance for your input. Geoff P.

[cabowen]

Sometimes they change quite a lot....One needs verified reference examples which illustrate the smith's mei over time. Additionally, it is not a bad idea to look at the blade to see if the style and quality of workmanship matches the smith's known work.