The correct therm for this unusual blade

[Carlo Giuseppe Tacchini]

Hi all. Anybody here is able to say me the correct therm to call this

votive blade ? Is it written in the Japanese caption and I'm not able to catch it ?

 

Any help will be highly appreciated.

 

thanks in advance.

 

Carlo

 

[Paul Martin]

Hi Carlo,

 

Thats one of the Hocho Masamune from Yasukuni Jinja

 

Best

[Carlo Giuseppe Tacchini]

thanks Paul.

No specific therm for this shape ? Simply a votive Tanto ?

[Stever]

That's crazy! How wide is that blade? Votive, certainly...I don't see how you could wield that if you had to.

 

Paul, I thought the hocho Masamune tanto were all functional blades. Is this one a copy of the others just made in a really exaggerated style? Is it a Masamune blade?

 

Thanks,

[Guest Simon Rowson]

I think that this one is a genuine Masamune.....you can just see the equally large koshirae at the bottom of the picture.

 

Here's me handling a similar sized tanto at an antique fair in Tokyo:

 

Simon

[Stever]

Cool. I've just never seen a blade like that before. The only info I've seen on hocho masamune blades regards these ones:

 

http://www.universalswordsman.com/Swords-SmithPages/Masamune2006.html

 

Didn't know he made massive 'hocho' for shrines as well.

 

Thanks,

[Carlo Giuseppe Tacchini]

I think that this one is a genuine Masamune.....you can just see the equally large koshirae at the bottom of the picture.

 

Here's me handling a similar sized tanto at an antique fair in Tokyo:

 

Simon

 

Too cool picture to be not further shared with full credit to you, of course :

 

Post n. 17 here :

 

http://forums.swordforum.com/showthread ... post906252

[Guest Simon Rowson]

No problem, Carlo!

 

It seems to fit in with your other discussion thread quite well (especially as it shows both me and the dealer wielding the monster together!). :D

 

All the best,

 

Simon

[Nobody]

votive blade ? Is it written in the Japanese caption and I'm not able to catch it ?

 

Hi all,

 

I do not think that the blade is a genuine Masamune. AFAIK, only three genuine Hocho Masamune (庖丁正宗) are known today, and the blade is not one of them.

The caption beside the blade says that it is thought to be made in Yoshino jidai (吉野時代). That means Nanbokucho (南北朝), I think. The length of the blade is 41.2 cm, while each genuine Hocho Masamune is not longer than 24.3 cm.

 

One of Hocho Masamune (Tokugawa Art Museum)

http://bunka.nii.ac.jp/ResultImage.do?h ... kType=huge

[Guest Simon Rowson]

Oops, sorry Koichi san, and thank you for your correction!

 

When I saw the blade at the Yasukuni Jinja I could only read the name "Masamune" amongst the kanji and so I thought it was the man himself.

 

I'll stick to reading Japanese beer-cans in future! :D

 

All the best,

 

Simon

[Carlo Giuseppe Tacchini]

Thanks for the inputs.