Japanese Tanto Help Needed Reading Marking

[TNcollector]

My friend sent me some more pics he wanted me to post. He chalked the tang some more and shaded the pictures. You may not be able to tell any more than you could from the first pictures. Thanks for you time and thanks for looking. Thanks, Robert

[SteveR]

I am thinking someone just chisled some japanese canji on it to make it look maker signed.
Where and from whom was the blade acquired ? A dealer ? An individual ?

[TNcollector]

You may be right. My friend aquired it from an auction house in Benton, Ky a couple of weeks ago.

[Kiipu]

There was a Shōwa era swordsmith that used this signature.
菊一文珠作 = Kikuichi Monju saku.

[ghp95134]

There was a Shōwa era swordsmith that used this signature.
菊一文珠作 = Kikuichi Monju saku.

From Markus Sesko's Japanese Swordsmiths:

• KANENAGA (包永), Shōwa (昭和, 1926-1989), Nara – “Kikuichi Monju Shirō Kanenaga” (菊一文珠四郎包永), “Kikuichi Monju saku” (菊一文珠作)

-- Guy