Ww2 Japanese sword

[Cgun99]

Can anyone tell me much about this sword?
I bought it from a ww2 vet. He brought it home from the philippines.
He said he was sick and had no one to leave it to. If I wouldn't have bought it he was taking it to the local p.d.

 

[Brian Williams]

We need some pictures.

 

[Cgun99]

 

[hso]

Signatures imply a hand made blade, but drilled peg holes in the tang say "modern" manufacture. I can't make out if there are file marks on the tang or not.

Are there any stamped symbols on the tang? A star or anything else?

Please provide a photo of the tip and of the entire tang.

Here's some reading that can help. http://home.earthlink.net/~steinrl/showato.htm

 

[gregory.moore]

That is pretty awesome though. How much $ did you have to give for something like that?

 

[Creature]

Looks like a Shin-Gunto. They are steadily increasing in value. I have very good condition Kai-Gunto that I paid $750 for back in 2002. It has been appraised at more than a grand today.

 

[M-Cameron]

did the WW2 vet have any more to the story?
how he got it?
who/ where he got it from?
ect.




also, could you get some close up pictures of the blade and the edge.....

as well as some measurements........

 

[hso]

Do get him to write the story down of how he got it. It is very important to have these stories recorded both from an historical standpoint and the dollar value.

You should post on the sword sites http://www.quanonline.com/military/military_reference/japanese/samurai_swords.html

 

[GCBurner]

Looks like a standard issue military scabbard, hilt, and tsuba. I have one that looks exactly like it, except the scabbard originally had a leather cover, which unfortunately had to be discarded due to dry rot. If it's like mine, it's an early 20th Century manufactured blade, with an etched temper line, instead of the folded steel and hand tempered craftsmanship of an early sword. It's definitely an officers model, the non-com version came with a cast grip in base metal, painted to look like the traditional silk wrapped ray skin and bronze fittings.

 

[Cgun99]

He did not tell me much other than off a dead officer in The Philippines. There no stars or other symbels on the tang besides the kanji. The guy sold it to me for $100 about four years ago.

 

[Cgun99]

The marks on the tang appear to be file marks. But the lettering seem to be made with a small pointed punch...

 

[CWL]

The date of the sword is Showa Period, March 1942. This indicates that it is a Military Shin Gunto and not a family weapon.

I am a bit skeptical as to the authenticity because the tang punching in the close-up appears to have been added later than the blade, but that could be due to picture quality.