My layman's pinyin & translation of the characters:
Top characters read as Tung (together) Sheng (prosperous).
Bottom characters as Tai (great) He (river).
Perhaps someone more academic could decode deeper.
The 3 symbols are indeed of 3 of the 8 immortals Fearn mentioned. But I'm a little surprised your blade does not have the "7 stars", an important symbol for a Daoist if indeed the Jian has Daoist connection. The blade reminds me of one I had the priviledge of seeing in pictures a few years ago belonging to Bill Marsh, a very nice Jian and restored by the same restorer I think.
Last edited by John; 8th December 2004 at 01:56 AM.
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