My first nihonto - and I need help!

[Shiromori]

I've bought my first Japanese sword. I've spent most of my waking hours for the last four days attempting to translate the mei, but as a complete neophyte I haven't got very far.... A couple of the kanji (assuming they are kanji) I can't identify at all.

 

The characters on the nakago can be split into four groups: the kiku-mon above the mekugi-ana, the group of three to the right of the mekugi-ana that appear to read 山城住 (yamashiro ju - resident of Yamashiro), a group of 7 large characters below the mekugi-ana, and a group of 5 smaller characters below those.

 

Taking the group of seven, the first two characters appear to be 天 (but could be 夭 or 无 or something else entirely) and 國, giving possible translations of Amakuni and Tengoku (heaven). The third large character is a mystery - it doesn't resemble any kanji I've seen. Characters 4 and 5 are I think 城 and 守 (defend the castle? or 守 could mean lord?). Characters 6 and 7 are again unreadable by me (7 is identical to 3).

 

From the last group of five smaller characters, the first I've found impossible to identify. The second could be 後 and the third is possibly 羊 (together, the behind of a sheep?!). Character 4 looks like 鍛 (forge metal) and the last looks like 文.

 

So, the sword-smith appears to have been a resident of Yamashiro, but other than that it's all a mystery. Any help would be much appreciated!

 

I've included pictures of the mei, a horimono on the blade (Raijin? There is a rain pattern on the habaki.), the blade, and an attempt at the ha-mon. Apologies, but my camera isn't great and my photography skills are worse!

 

Thanks

 

Steve B

[NihontoEurope]

Howdy!

 

Where did you buy it?

 

The image/horomino looks like a cartoon character. Never seen that on a sword before. The Kanji looks like it has been randomised along the tang.

 

/Martin

[Shiromori]

Hello Martin

 

I bought the sword at an auction house in a sale of general household effects with some militaria. Having an interest in Japanese martial arts (ju-jitsu / judo) it caught my eye.... The tsuka was firmly attached to the blade, but as it obviously has some age I took a chance - I paid very little for it. The bo-hi is shorter on the side with the horimono, which is just in front of the habaki, so I would guess this is an original feature.

 

"The Kanji looks like it has been randomised along the tang." Ha! That doesn't sound very hopeful.

 

Steve

[Curran]

Actually, it looks rather interesting to me.

I stick mostly with fittings, as I make too many errors with blades- but the file marks on nakago look okay.

 

Yamashiro Ju,

then "(Dai Kuni ? Yamashiro

 

That is off the cuff, and I probably butchered it so badly that I shouldn't have posted my very quick read without hitting the books.

 

However, the chik-chik outline and marking stains look like the precursor to someone having engraved a horimono, and then not done it.

 

I will be interested to see how the better readers translate this one, and whether or not it is the blueprint to a horimono never carved. What I am calling the prep work seems reasonably well done set up of ratios and perspective.

[Veli]

Yamashiro ju...Amakuni Yamashiro no kami Toshiyama... I guess... A shinshinto smith.

 

Veli

[NihontoEurope]

Here is a reference attached...

 

/Martin

[leo]

"The behind of a sheep" - that was a good one!

What puzzles me is the etching of the Fudo(?). Where is it located? If it is on the blade, I miss the shinogi. Is it hirazukuri?

 

Best,

Martin

[NihontoEurope]

Martin,

 

Regarding "behind of a sheep"

 

The kanji for sheep is....

 

羊

 

:D

/Martin

[John A Stuart]

I am curious what kind of steel this sword was forged from. John

[leo]

I know, Martin, I am sorry and it is , too, but I coudn´t help it.

 

Martin

[Shiromori]

Thank you all for your replies. The image (and Fudo is a very good guess and probably correct - surrounded by flames, sword in the right hand, and a coil of rope in the left) is on the mei side of the blade and would be just forward of the habaki on the assembled sword. (The picture of the full blade is that of the opposite side.) The blade is hira-zukuri.

 

"I am curious what kind of steel this sword was forged from." I can't answer this. The nakago is rusty (the picture does not give a good colour rendition - it's actually much darker) and there are what appear to be rust spots along the length of the blade. The blade is very scratched along its length giving a "brushed" effect. What are your thoughts John?

 

Thanks again

 

Steve

[Ted Tenold]

One of the strangest things I've seen. The Fudo looks like it came from Endor province.

[runagmc]

That horimono is truely bizarre. It almost looks like the fire part is inlaid with copper or something. I've never seen anything like it. It's either horribly done or unfinished or both. Very strange...

[hybridfiat]

Perhaps it is the photos and my eyes but is this blade nickel/chrome plated?

Would not be the first blade that someone has desided to "improve".

[runagmc]

Perhaps it is the photos and my eyes but is this blade nickel/chrome plated?

Would not be the first blade that someone has desided to "improve".

I don't think so, because you can see the hamon in the bottom pic...

[Shiromori]

Fudo will be most displeased with being compared to an ewok! :lol:

 

I don't think the blade is plated, though the temper-line is very difficult to see and I had to get the camera angle just right to take that picture.

 

The etching is inlaid with a yellow-ish metal. There is also some glue on the blade at that point, particularly along the mune. The koiguchi is missing from the saya and the saya has split along its length. I would guess that the glue is from an attempt to repair the saya, with the sword being placed in the saya before the glue had set....

 

To be fair to the artist, as the surface of the blade is quite worn, the image was probably more impressive when first made.

[John A Stuart]

On the inscription before ...鍛之 there are 3 kanji, that, when I magnify, pixillate to much to read. Can anyone see these or assume what they are?

[Shiromori]

Here's a close-up of those three characters - with side lighting from the bottom left.

 

Thank you for looking at this.

[Mark S.]

Could the engraving have been something like this and just have been polished / buffed / ground down?

http://www.arco-iris.com/George/images/ ... rimono.jpg

[drbvac]

This is a mystery for sure - the file marks on the nakago look exactly like a file rather than the marks a file makes. Someone must know the process for a horimono carving? Do some scribe the character and then etch parts to be removed? The mei is certainly seems to be cut with direct strokes but still looks - different?>

[runagmc]

they use small engravers, like little chisels to carve horimono. It's done the same way as a wood carving basically... although far more slow and deliberate.

[drbvac]

Yes - I was aware of that but before you start to carve you have to mark out the design as with wood or marble don't you

[Shiromori]

Could the engraving have been something like this and just have been polished / buffed / ground down?

http://www.arco-iris.com/George/images/ ... rimono.jpg

I don't think the surface of the sword has been reduced significantly, though, given the general condition of the sword, it is likely that some of the finest detail and yellow metal inlay has been lost. I cleaned the blade with alcohol in preparation for oiling and the metal inlay is very golden, so is probably actually gold (or has a high gold content).

 

...the file marks on the nakago look exactly like a file rather than the marks a file makes.

The yasurime is very regular and is in a pattern that I now know to be kesho yasuri (so a shinto or more recent sword?).

 

I've tried to continue with the translation. The first step is determining what characters have actually been chiselled in to this sword. With the help of the forum, so far I have:

 

山 城 住 (Yamashiro resident)

 

天 國 ? 城 守 (詩/專/寺) ?

 

? (浪/很) (羊) 鍛 之 (??? forged this)

 

Where the ? means I have no idea and the () means I'm unsure (with possible multiple options).

 

I'm going to leave this for now as staring at kanji has given me a migraine! I'll do some more general reading on Japanese swords seeking inspiration....

 

Thank you to all that have contributed.

[Nobody]

I might be late to come to this thread. The characters are as follows;

 

山城住

天國山城守壽山

於浪華鍛之

[John A Stuart]

Hi Moriyama san, so 'Oite Naniwa' 於浪華 at (old name for) Osaka? Those kanji were driving me crazy. Thanks, John

[cabowen]

It means "forged in Naniwa" which is indeed an old name for Osaka....

[Shiromori]

I might be late to come to this thread. The characters are as follows;

 

山城住

天國山城守壽山

於浪華鍛之

 

That's fantastic! Thank you very much. Veli nearly had this earlier in the thread.

 

Assuming the mei is genuine, the sword-smith's name is Amakuni Yamashiro no kami Juzan.

 

Here's another example: Wakizashi

 

Thanks again!

[Veli]

Ah, thank you Moriyama-san, those three kanji 於浪華 kept troubling me, too...

 

Hawley lists 壽山 both as Jusan and Toshiyama. I wonder which is the correct/more used reading?

 

Veli

[cabowen]

He is listed in the Meikan as Toshiyama with the alternate reading listed underneath. One would assume Toshiyama is the mainstream pronunciation....