very strange jian

josh stout · 11th March 2008, 06:02 PM

Over the years of watching this particular seller, my conclusion is that what you see is a mixture of outright fakes, mostly Japanese things or chang jian for the true suckers, composite pieces of mixed origin, and antiques of low worth such as this one. I have had mixed results with the last category. Some ordinary looking pieces turn out to have fantastic pattern welding when put in some vinegar, and some nice looking things end up with edges and tips ground flat, ugly pits where brass stars were, and the occasional cracked blade. Most of the low worth antiques would cost about $100 in mainland China and he charges $135 to make a little profit. I doubt there is time for careful inspection of each piece so the good and the bad are all lumped together.

Village made weapons almost never have a scabbard.

I did not bid on the jian I posted because the blade was so compromised it could easily break. You can see the edge plate and folding pretty easily though, which is what made me curious enough to ask some friends in Beijing who are quite knowledgeable collector/dealers. They assured me the sword was genuine and of a recognizable type.

My friends often have a similar inventory but of the next level up in quality or scarcity value plus I don't have to put up with cracked blades, so I rarely bid on eBay anymore. These village made things are not scarce at all, just not seen in the US much. What Western collectors look for are long blades with complete fittings. I almost never see such things for sale. They are truly rare these days and have reached a high enough value that the fakes are very good.

I prefer to look for interesting/unusual village made things where the quality is all in the blade.

I have asked my friends to look for one of these southern chang jian without damage. I will post it if they ever find one.
Josh

11th March 2008, 06:02 PM	#4
josh stout Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 407	Over the years of watching this particular seller, my conclusion is that what you see is a mixture of outright fakes, mostly Japanese things or chang jian for the true suckers, composite pieces of mixed origin, and antiques of low worth such as this one. I have had mixed results with the last category. Some ordinary looking pieces turn out to have fantastic pattern welding when put in some vinegar, and some nice looking things end up with edges and tips ground flat, ugly pits where brass stars were, and the occasional cracked blade. Most of the low worth antiques would cost about $100 in mainland China and he charges $135 to make a little profit. I doubt there is time for careful inspection of each piece so the good and the bad are all lumped together. Village made weapons almost never have a scabbard. I did not bid on the jian I posted because the blade was so compromised it could easily break. You can see the edge plate and folding pretty easily though, which is what made me curious enough to ask some friends in Beijing who are quite knowledgeable collector/dealers. They assured me the sword was genuine and of a recognizable type. My friends often have a similar inventory but of the next level up in quality or scarcity value plus I don't have to put up with cracked blades, so I rarely bid on eBay anymore. These village made things are not scarce at all, just not seen in the US much. What Western collectors look for are long blades with complete fittings. I almost never see such things for sale. They are truly rare these days and have reached a high enough value that the fakes are very good. I prefer to look for interesting/unusual village made things where the quality is all in the blade. I have asked my friends to look for one of these southern chang jian without damage. I will post it if they ever find one. Josh