What do the inscriptions mean ?
 

Can anybody tell me what these inscriptions say / mean ? Japanese. Found at the hilt of some wakuzashis and katanas. Thank You.

...invisible Japanese writing?? :D :D

See here for a guide to posting photos.

http://vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=13631

The Missing Images
 

The missing images:

Not exactly my area, but I would say that the one on the left end and definitely the one on the right end are Chinese made fakes.

Sorry.

We need Rich for his explanations since he is the expert in this area........

wrong post

I do not think that any of the swords pictured are Japanese, in general the carvings on the nakago (tang) of a nihonto (Japanese sword) would show the mei (signature) of the sword smith, some additional information such as the date the sword was made, who it was made for, inspirational messages also.

I think (?) the inscriptions say Made in China by Crafty Faker. Not really, but I do believe the sword is a Chinese fake. The hada is definitely acid etched, not at all a trait found on true Nihonto. Actually the characters don't make a bit of sense to me. Just two immediate things that say fake to me. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

Rich S

Can we focus ??
 

OK, people, Did not ask whether the swords were fake or not or opinions regarding their craftmanship. I just want to know what the inscriptions say / mean. Can't someone read Japanese?

Fake Chinese blade
 

Friends,
I have a low tolerance for Chinese fakes. I fail to see how anybody could confuse this stuff with traditional cutlery. Unfortunately, the last time I let this bias manifest itself I was corrected. I remain terribly sorry
Please let me try again.
These "swords" are constructed of high contrast steels. The grain they show may be real, but they seem not to be edge tempered. They are not old enough to vote.
One says Tata Hanamichi Jiro and the other says something like Morita Kazujiro with a "date" that says something like "the 1st year of creation. "
These names look NOTHING like a traditional swordsmith's signature. I suspect that they were copied from a recent Japanese business card - or more likely a credit card signature on an order or porno tapes.
Peter

CAN WE FOCUS ??????
 

PLEASE PEOPLE !!!! I do not want to start a debate about chinese fakes, age of swords, or anything else! I just want to find out what these inscriptions say / mean. It is unfair to coopt my thread to push your own political agenda. We can talk about ( and you can rail about ) fakes, chinese things, and anything else you care to LATER. I posted this on this site because I was led to believe that experts inghabited this site and that I could find a translation. Do not other people ask for this kind of thing? Snotty sarcasm has no place here. I am asking a perfectly legitimate academic question. Are the "experts" on this site not up to it? I am beginning to be disappointed. Cheap shots are easy; having the skill to translate an obscure script is not.

I guess the answer is no, no one can read them because they are not Japanese. May be just jiberish. At least this is what I am hearing.

Thank you for your wise words. We can see that your agenda is very demanding, to the point that it doesn't include observations that are intrinsic to the subject of your query, whether you like them or not. In such case, no expert may follow the steps of your desire. You have had a solid demonstration that the the inscription is a fake; hardly any expert may be able to read what is meaningless.
Also your quoting terms like political agenda and sarcasm are possibly part of a text you were meant to keep for a different letter.
Nevertheless, we appreciate your input; we always learn something, even if it is out of nothing.
Thread closed.

Suggestion...
 

Seriously? Take it down a notch, please. You're unlikely to get any help taking that tone.

Just in case the response of only 2 moderators aren't enough to convince you how seriously misguided your approach is here....yeah, wow, seriously! :rolleyes: