STUDY SUBJECTS and GUIDES 
Go to .. NIHON-TO ~ TOSOGU ~ RELIGION ~ CERAMICS ~ BIOGRAPHY'S ~ OTHER ~ WEBSITES
NIHON-TO STUDY MATERIAL
The Beauty of the Japanese Sword by Michihiro Tanobe
Sword Terms ~ Guide for Nihon-to. ~ Sword Culture ~ Sword Origami
Guide for Kantei ~ The Eight Roads hold The Schools. ~ From OSAFUNE NAGAMITSU to the SUKESADA's.
Swordsmith's along the Eight Roads.
The BEST reference for Koto Schools and Smiths along the Eight Roads is at Sho-Shin.
Japanese Famous Swords. ~ The Japanese Shinsa Method ~ Learning Sword and Smith Kantei Method
Study all the material about Masamune & Muramasa
Manufacture of the Japanese Blade ~ GOKADEN, the Five Traditions. ~ Japanese Sword History.
A History of Nihonto by Sato Kanzan
The Development of the Japanese Samurai Sword
TOSOGU STUDY MATERIAL
Kaneiye Tsuba comparisons and Views -- Nobuiye Tsuba comparisons and Views
Namban Gallery of Fine Tsuba
RELIGIOUS THEMES
The Shakuhachi - Origin, History and Views
Confucius K'UNG FU-TSZE ~ Phoenix Bird description and history.
CERAMICS & POTTERY TOPICS
Lacquer Ware, definitions and schools.
Japanese Art Definitions
The Origin of Raku Ware
Yaki Ware ~ Description of Tea Chanoma Utensils
Oda Nobunaga - Warlord. ~ Toyotomi Hideyoshi - Unifier of Japan. ~ Tokugawa Ieyasu - 1st Tokugawa.
Bizen Norimitsu - fourth generation smith. ~ Sandai Soshu Tsunahiro teacher of Hiromasa.
Hon-ami Koetsu founder of Rinpa School of painting. ~ Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa .
OTHER ITEMS
I wish to share my thoughts and concerns about "authenticity". Because Nihon-to is a collectible work of art, well-preserved antique blades by reputable smiths are extremely valuable. With an increased number of enthusiasts, the two most serious concerns of novice collectors of antique Nihon-to blades are a)the authenticity of the blade made by a reputable smith that they are interested in purchasing; and b)affordablility of the blade they 'can't live without'. The concern of affordability must be dealt with by the individual collector at a different level.
The concern of the authenticity of the given antique blade can be reduced or minimized if the collector is purchasing from a reputable art dealer. And, if the antique Nihon-to is accompanied with a legitimate certificate of authenticity by an established organization such as NBTHK or NTHK.
I am neither an 'appraiser' nor a 'connoisseur' qualified to determine the authenticity of any potentially valuable antique Nihon-to. As a novice Nihon-to collector, I have learned a basic outline of how the screening process is normally performed. This process of determining authenticity involves careful examinations of attributes in several different areas. The following four areas are what I use to determine attributes.
1) Structural attributes peculiar to a smith's work: sugata (shape of the blade), nakago (tang shape), forging/construction method, and hada (surface texture).
2) Attributes peculiar to the smith's work: hamon, nie/nioi, and hataraki.
3) Smith's personal attributes (mei): mei itself as an authenticating signature, and how the mei is 'usually' written (how the mei is carved with a chisel).
4) Chronological attributes based on the time frame the smith is known to have been working: inclusions with the mei (art names, titles, residence, etc.) and the color/patina on the nakago.
CALENDAR Dates from Juei (1182-1184) to Heisei (1989)
Maps of Japan during early history.
EDUCATIONAL WEBSITES
Richard
Stein's JAPANESE SWORD GUIDE
The most comprehensive Japanese
Sword resource online.
TSUBA,
ART of the JAPANESE SWORD
by Jim Gilbert, expert on
Tsuba.
NIHONTO-NO-BI
Malcom Cox presents excellent information on Echizen Kinai, Yamashiro Tenpo and tetsu sukashi tsuba.
SHO-SHIN
Robert Cole has the best
material on the
Danny Massey's NIHONTOCRAFT
A website dedicated to the study and preservation of the
Japanese sword.
YAMABUSHI ANTIQUES
Boris Markhasin has written numerous articles about Tosogu which are very educational. Many are referenced on this web site.
AFU RESEARCH
Afu is dedicated to translating Nihon-to books from Japanese to English. He has complete English volumes of the Nihon to Koza.
ISSOAN TEA SCHOOL
Marjorie Yap Sensei instructs the Urasenke Tradition of Tea.
SAMURAI ARCHIVES
This is an 'EXCELLANT' web site to learn everything about Samurai. History at its best.
BUDDHIST NETWORK
If you seek information and knowledge about Buddhism, visit this wonderful web site.
E-YAKIMONO website
Robert Yelin's comprehensive ceramics online resource.
JAANUS
Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System.
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