Want Information on Grandfather's Sword

IowaSean · 08-13-2010, 11:45 PM

Hi all, I'm glad I found this forum because it seems to have a ton of knowledgeable people.

Long story short is that all my life I had seen this sword laying against a wall at my grandfather's house my whole life. I had asked him about the sword and all he ever said before he died was that he brought it back from the war. I removed the handle to expose the tang so I could get pictures if there was any kind of writing underneath. To my surprise there was engraving or etching of some sort on each side of the tang along with hand painted or written words as well (hopefully they show up well enough in the photos).

The blade itself is pretty dirty and knicked up and the paint on the scabbard has certainly seen better days.

I want as much information as folks can give me on this sword, especially the model, year, and especially what the writing and etchings say. My grandfather passed away last year and I was allowed to have this sword along with several other things I had remembered as a child. I'd also like to know a value on something like this in case I should get some of these things I got from him insured.

Also, what can I do about cleaning or polishing the blade and making it a beautiful display piece in my office? What kind of places do this type of restoration? Where can I find places like this in Iowa?

Thank you so much for your advice and information, hopefully I can have a more complete story about my grandfather's service history. Now hopefully the I can get the pictures actually posted to here

IowaSean · 08-14-2010, 03:08 AM

One more bit of information I wanted to relay was the fact that some of the writing on the tang you can clearly make out was written in red...Not the etched part, but the actual writing above the etched markings. I found that really interesting.

**SteveR** · 08-14-2010, 04:33 AM

You have a military army officers sword WWII period made. All my books are in boxes at the moment so I can't help with the tang translation. Unfortunately the blade appears to have been handeled and has grayed. But as a family heirloom it is priceless. A great item to have.
Steve

**Alan M** · 08-14-2010, 05:56 PM

Hi Sean , and welcome to the forum , i really enjoy seeing the veteran " bring back " swords and thanks for showing this one . As Steve has already mentioned it`s a fantastic piece of family history . Do you know of your Grandfathers service history , what unit he was with and where he acquired it ? The blade does not look in top condition and looks from the photos as if it has some aging , but you can purchase maintenance kits for these swords part of which contains Choji ( clove ) oil , with which you should coat the blade , but do not touch the blade with bare skin. The Kanji you show on the tang is the date it was manufactured which is Showa 18 Nen 10 , which translates to October 1943 . To me , as a personal item it could not be valued , but i would probably insure it for approximately $1200 depending on blade condition

IowaSean · 08-14-2010, 07:28 PM

Thank you for your insights, both of you. Any idea what the other side of the tang says? I know it probably lists maker and where it was made from what I've learned on here. I only know small portions of my grandfather's service history. I know he was in the Navy and he told me that he was in Guam for quite a while at one point. He told me the sword was surrendered to him, but I don't know what he meant. I will ask my mother and see if she knows more than I do. I can also ask his wife as she is still living. Thanks again! Any more info anyone has I'm all ears. This forum is a wonderful resource!