Help with Mei Translation

[Frankd0024]

The sword has no other markings on it and no blood groove.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cabowen]

My guess is Ido Hidetoshi.....井戸秀敏

 

Seki smith, WWII....

[Nobody]

特殊鋼以井戸秀俊作 - From special steel, Ido Hidetoshi made.

[Frankd0024]

Cool. Thanks for the help. Now It has me wanting to know what the "special steel" is. With no other Marking on it could this sword be hand made?

 

My father gave me the sword and two guns 3 days before he passed away. I think my grandfather brought the sword back from the war. One side of the sword is in bad shape. It is rusted bad. My father thought it was better for the value to let things rust then keep them in good shape.

 

As you can see in the one pic the scabbard was painted blue and has a small rope on it. This is the first one i saw that has a rope. The rope looks newer then the the other ones on the handle of the sword but it is wrapped around the scabbard in the same way the ones on the handle are.

[drdata]

Never seen that style of Tsuka wrap. The nakago appears to have been cleaned, which is not ideal if its something you are currently doing.

 

 

 

Regards

[Lance]

Sorry about your father, was your grandfather in the navy by chance? I only ask because whenever I've seen that knot work/weaving on Japanese swords, in person or in militaria auction catalogs, they were always described as being done by returning Navy servicemen on the trip home, when off duty. I attached an image of this type of knot work for naval bell pulls, and although modern shows the same type of weaving.

Regards,

Lance

[Frankd0024]

We don't know how my Grandfather got the sword. He drove a tank and was in the 1st Infantry Division, Big Red 1 and as far as I know he was in Europe. I have a footlocker full of WW2 stuff.

 

As far as the Tang. We had to clean the side with the Mei. It had over 1/4" of rust on it and you could not see ant markings on it. The sword was in a wet basement for 50 years or more. The value of the sword does not matter to me anyway. When my father gave it to me I had to promise him I would never sell the sword or the guns. One of the guns was made around 1832 and has been in my family for 5 generation.

 

PS

My wife found out that the special steel was Tokushu steel.

[Brian]

Yep..the knots were definitely added later, probably by an Allied serviceman (navy is likely)

Special steel usually refers to a less-traditionally forged steel, incorporating some Western steel or something else not 100% traditional.

Cleaning the tang was a mistake...the rust could be stabilized without revoving it all. But what is done is done. Reading the mei is less important than keeping the patina (for anyone else reading that comes across this dilema)

 

Brian