Japanese Sword For Comments
 

I have post a new thread yesterday but till now it was not up Yet.I am posting it again.
I am interested in Japanese sword and study it for a few months and recently just brought one for a study piece.

I need help in translet the words and the age of the sword

Thanks

katana
 

hi
you ask for more information about these japanese sword!! where you bought it? please send better pictures from the tang and the signature. my first thought is that it is one othese many many "guarantee original japanese swords" made in china! please look if you can see some one from the rest of the hamon line at the edge. but the first indication is the conditoin from the signature and the shape from the tang of your sword. send some more pictures and i hope i can tell you more over your sword!
stefan

Could you take a piece of onion skin paper or thin paper and a soft lead pencil and gently make a rubbing of the characters on the tang? It works best if you make your rubbing at a diagonal to the tang.

Do not clean the tang, just make a gentle rubbing. Scan and post this. Maybe we can help. It is hard to read the characters from your post.

This may give a clear image of the characters.

Thanks for the information.i will try to take more pictures and by the way do you have pictures of fake japanese sword?

Just taking a stab at it...

It is not in Japanese polish (with poor lines, even for a mass produced WW2 blade). The Kissaki is an odd shape. The tang (age) is no older than WW2. My gut feel, with these quality photos... it is a resent Chinese made blade.

I think that BMStar is correct.

In most cases you do not find a good Japanese sword cheap that is polished.

For instance I have a good friend who is one of the top Japanese sword collectors in the country. He just bought a famous name sword for $350. Then he had to pay

$2500 to get it polished in Japan.
$1450 to get it papered in Japan.
$950 to have a Shirasaya scabbard and handle made.

$4900 to have it ready plus the cost of the blade.

It is worth more, but only because he recognized the mei (signature) and knew enough to understand it was genuine. Nihonto collecting needs a great deal of study before you lay out much money.

I have collected WW2 Shin Gunto swords in different conditions of preservation... all will meet a "reasonable" degree of "correct" polish. This very process of polishing will destroy the appearance of a blade if not done properly. If the polish is missing... this stands out as well. This sword does not appear to be "in polish."

Samurai period blades and "privately" polished blades are a "great step up" in quality when compared to the mass produced war time blades. Today it cost more than $100 an inch to have one polished in Japan... which reserves this process for worthy blades.

hi teohong
if you will realy study the original japanese art swords, i mean realy samurai swords before the ww2 you must buy at first some good reference books. ( 100 masterpieces from the compton collection, the japanese sword fron sato kanzan, the craft of samurai sword, etc.) read these books and show with your eys. at next, look in the www. maybe there is in your neighborhood an section from the nbthk.( the society ot the japanese swordmuseum) these collectors can show and described you realy good japanese swords at their meetings. if you started your collection allown, you bearn your money than you paid for so much swords so much money and in some years than you have enough knowledge you must see that it is only cheap garbage. you must training your eys and these can you only than you see good swords not shin gunto swords from the war ore swords with an bad politure( it is poison for your eys). you must learn to see the pattern in the hamon, the grain in the hada, you must see the complete shape from these swords. every time have its own shape and so you can learn what is an authentic sword. i think your sword is not such an sword. it is to expansiv to send your sword to an kraftsman in japan. be not worry, save your money over an longer time and than buy you an good sword by an good dealer ore over the nbthk. maybe with papers from the nbthk. so you have an life time an good feeling than you hold your sword in the hands.
stefan