Can you identify this sword?

bman4449 · (#1 (**permalink**))

Hey guys, I'm a noob here and am looking for somebody to help me figure out this mystery. So, my grandparents came upon this sword about 60 years ago when living in San Francisco. It appears to be made of copper, brass, and steel. The sheath is made of a dark wood and so is the handle. The blade is an even 24 inches, (61 cm) the sword itself is 34 inches (86.5 cm) and the sheath is 26.26 inches (67.1 cm). It's got a cloth tied to the end with something written on it; it feels like linen or hemp. If anyone has any idea from which era this sword comes or what the cloth says, I would much appreciate it. Have more pics if you want to see them.

alanX · (#2 (**permalink**))

I don't think that's Japanese.

Well...I think I see a oddly written す in there, but I'm guessing it's part of the above Kanji.

blimp · (#3 (**permalink**))

afaik, it looks like an address, on hokkaido.　i can't identify the city
someone else can perhaps give you the full address

bman4449 · (#4 (**permalink**))

Thank you very much, blimp, for your reply. It's a start!

YukisUke · (#5 (**permalink**))

To me, the writing looks like Japanese. Maybe you could ask someone at a museum or someone who's very good with Kanji. I hope that helps.

Excessum · (#6 (**permalink**))

That's one of Shin guntos of WW2 (Most probably Type 98). They were produced from 1935 till the end of WW2 for the Japanese military and mostly served as decoration and not true weapons (much like the swords used by officers during the Civil war in the states). They were made mostly in factories and are not very valuable. I think you can still buy these katanas in ebay for a few hundred $.

EDIT: What does the tsuba (hand guard) look like? Can you take a photo of it?

SHAD0W · (#7 (**permalink**))

Wow, Ex. You know your stuff when it comes to swords!

You reminded me of solid snake talking about a gun

bman4449 · (#8 (**permalink**))

Wow. Thank you SO much for your input, Excessum. I posted this mostly for my dad, who owns the sword. He's been awfully curious about it for years and I'm sure he'll be glad to hear news about it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Excessum

EDIT: What does the tsuba (hand guard) look like? Can you take a photo of it?

Please excuse my low-quality photo, but here's the hand guard.

VampireGirl1314 · (#9 (**permalink**))

i dont know much about swords but......
THAT STUBA IS AWESOME...>^_^<

Excessum · (#10 (**permalink**))

Quote:

Originally Posted by SHAD0W

Wow, Ex. You know your stuff when it comes to swords!

You reminded me of solid snake talking about a gun

Dude... don't mention guns in my vicinity, or you might find yourself involved in a overwhelmingly one-sided conversation 8)

Quote:

Originally Posted by bman4449

Wow. Thank you SO much for your input, Excessum. I posted this mostly for my dad, who owns the sword. He's been awfully curious about it for years and I'm sure he'll be glad to hear news about it.

Yup, that's Type 98 all right... most probably made after 1942, since it doesn't look like the early models - way too crude, even by the shin gunto standards of the time. They were running low on metal supplies back then (guess why?!), so they made everything as simple as possible, paying little-to-no attention to details.

Btw, is the blade rattling when you shake the sword a bit? Or is it still sitting tight?

Now... I am wondering if someone will translate the text on the cloth part. It's interesting, really to see where this sword came from =)

PS. And no problem... I am happy to help.

Quote:

Originally Posted by VampireGirl1314

i dont know much about swords but......
THAT STUBA IS AWESOME...>^_^<

You think this is nice? It was cut out by a friggin machine!

Feast your eyes at this baby:

Or take a look at ギャラリーサムライへ

Or just punch in "Tsuba" in google image search... you will be amazed =)