zman123 Posted January 20, 2012 Report Posted January 20, 2012 I have a sword obtained by my father during WW2 on New Guinea. It is in very good shape and I believe it is an original and much older than WW2. Can you assist me in identifying it? Thanks in advance for your help. I have attached photos. Quote
zman123 Posted January 20, 2012 Author Report Posted January 20, 2012 This last photo did not get included Quote
cabowen Posted January 20, 2012 Report Posted January 20, 2012 Signature reads: Bizen no Kuni ju Osafune Jiro ? Katsu ? (end is cut off by the photo) Made by Jiro ? Katsu ? (probably Katsumitsu) living in Osafune village in the province of Bizen Dated Eisho 6 (?) Nen 8 Gatsu Hi (eighth month of the 6th year of Eisho) (~1509) An older sword indeed..... Quote
zman123 Posted January 20, 2012 Author Report Posted January 20, 2012 Wow! Thank you! My mother in law dated it for me several years ago but she was unable to read the charachters since she is from Okinawa. How would I research this sword further and how would I get it appraised? Quote
Brian Posted January 20, 2012 Report Posted January 20, 2012 Chris, After studying the pics, I think you made a mistake. What it actually reads is: (9051~) (oɥsıǝ ɟo ɹɐǝʎ ɥʇ6 ǝɥʇ ɟo ɥʇuoɯ ɥʇɥƃıǝ) ıɥ nsʇɐƃ 8 uǝu (¿) 6 oɥsıǝ pǝʇɐp uǝzıq ɟo ǝɔuıʌoɹd ǝɥʇ uı ǝƃɐllıʌ ǝunɟɐso uı ƃuıʌıl ¿ nsʇɐʞ ¿ oɹıɾ ʎq ǝpɐɯ ¿ nsʇɐʞ ¿ oɹıɾ ǝunɟɐso nɾ ıunʞ ou uǝzıq Brian Quote
Toryu2020 Posted January 20, 2012 Report Posted January 20, 2012 Zman- Would love to see some close-ups of that blade. Dig around this site a bit and you'll find lots of resources to help you with you research. As it happens there is a shinsa (examination), kind of like antiques roadshow for swords, happening in Tampa next month. If you're interested search for Tampa Japanese Sword show or just follow the link in my signature and let us know if you've any questions. -t PS Brilliant Brian! Quote
cabowen Posted January 20, 2012 Report Posted January 20, 2012 Thanks Brian....my first chuckle of the day.,... Quote
Jussi Ekholm Posted January 22, 2012 Report Posted January 22, 2012 Well after seeing these pictures on another forum, and after spending long time trying to translate the mei, and then realizing that it had been already done, that Brians comment got me laughing so hard since I had drawn those kanji to paper so I didn't break my neck in the process... Well at least I got it pretty much correct which for me is a huge success. As a beginner it's always nice to know you were on the right track. I got only: Bizen ju Osafune, and now that you had those missing links of mine translated it all makes sense. I got little different dating, mine was: Eisho Jyu Nen Hachi-gatsu Hi 1513 August. To my eye that one kanji reads like 10. As I couldn't get registered yet on that other forum, I'll throw my tips in here. Not knowing where you are from but it you might want to meet some local collectors/sellers of antique weaponry. They would most likely be able to at least guide you in the right direction (where to find help with nihonto in your area). By reading these both threads I believe you live somewhere in US, so there will be lots of people with real wide knowledge. And of course, it would be nice if you could throw some close-ups for us. Quote
zman123 Posted January 22, 2012 Author Report Posted January 22, 2012 Thank you for the replies. You are correct, I am in the US and through the magic of the internet I found a Japanese art gallery that features swords of this type in my area and have sent an email to them (they are appointment only) to see if they are interested in viewing my sword and assisting me in researching it further. Quote
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