Please help witha European blade in a Japanese tachi mount

[Philip]

Originally Posted by pbleed

2. In addition to the overall “look”, two aspects of this tachi seem clearly “Japanese” to me. I think the polish really looks like a Japanese treatment, especially with the addition of a false “hamon.” I am also convinced that the clouds with dragon embellishments on the scabbard is ‘Japanese.’
3. There was, as well, a great fad in Japan during the late middle Edo period when wealthy fops like to get dressed up in foreign gear. I think this is the kind of thing that a wealthy guy could enjoy wearing when he was “on the town.”
Thanks for your help!
Peter

Hi, Peter

Your comments have prompted me to look at this sword yet again, and to be frank, the more I see of it the less inclined I am to think that this is a Japanese conversion. Most apparent is the workmanship, or rather the lack therof. The preceding two examples from museum collections show how carefully the remounts were done in a Japanese context. Both those pieces have habakis , features which are hallmarks of Japanese blades. A good kessho polish would create a much more convincing hamon. (and wouldn't a Japanese style polish deserve a proper scabbard and a habaki in order to keep the finish from getting rubbed and scraped?).

Stylistically, I see your point about a Japanese aesthetic. But I've seen similar cloud and dragon motifs on Korean scabbards as well, and there is a Joseon-era sword in the Met that has loose-ring suspension fittings just like this one. I attach an image of a Korean byeolun-geom which has the au naturel rayskin without silk wrapping on the hilt; indeed, unwrapped grips are far more prevalent on Korean swords than on Japanese. Also, the deep rounded pommel on your sword is practically identical to that on a Korean ferrule/pommel set I used to have, and the boar eye motif on same mirrors that on your sword's guard, whose engraved floral deco are also quite similar to what I've seen on other Korean mountings.

The overall build quality of your sword is also more in keeping with that of the munition-grade arms made late in Korea's dynastic history.

Lastly, I have seen pics of swords on display in military museums in Korea, and semi-Western styles were adopted towards the end of the royal period in the 19th cent.