Doubt about Guntō

[GGranha]

Hi gentlemen!
I bought this katana 1 week ago. I know it is a Guntō sword.
My questions:
a) Type 94, 95 or 98?
b) Used by officers or non-commissioned officers (NCOs)?
c) Machine made blade?
d) Period of production?
e) Price?
Many thanks for such a spontaneous help and sorry my bad english.
Regards from Brazil,
Gustavo
----------------------------------------------------------

[BOB COLEMAN]

Your pictures tell us little about what this sword is. It is definitely machine made. A good vertical picture of the tang would also help. The haqndle wrap is similar to that found on Chinese reproductions. The forum is not a free appraisal service so even with identifying this piece, it will not get a price. Besides our policy, it is impossible to appraise a genuine antique Japanese sword just from pictures. If you want to buy a genuine sword, and have no knowledge, buy it from a legitimate dealer.

[GGranha]

I bought from a collector. I really want to know if this sword is autentic or chinese reproduction.
Thanks so much for the help!

More pictures:



Best regards;
Gustavo

[Bruce Pennington]

Gustavo,

That's quite an attractive set of fittings on that thing! Whoever made it went to a lot of trouble and work. Can you tell if the gold on the fittings is gold-guilded or just paint?

Personnally, due to the overly visible "grain" in the blade, this looks like the standard "Damascus steel" popular with the Chinese reporduction business. They are ofte sold as "Handmade Japanese Sword" and the sender is located in China. The Japanese never used this type of steel.

Quite pretty and would make a great display, but I doubt this is Japanese.

[christek]

Is the serial number on the habaki a cause for concern on a shin gunto?

[RussM]

The serial number in this form is typical of many fakes.

Regards

Russ

[Stu W]

Reproduction without any doubt in my view and if you have to ask if that is a Type 94,95 or 98 then with respect you need to be doing a lot more study before acquiring your next sword.

Regards,
Stu

[Stu W]

This might be a good place for you to start.

THE JAPANESE SWORD GUIDE

Regards,
Stu

[Stu W]

By the way, no need to apologize for your use of English. It's certainly better than my Portuguese which I assume is your native language.

Regards,
Stu

[GGranha]

"if you have to ask if that is a Type 94,95 or 98 then with respect you need to be doing a lot more study before acquiring your next sword."

I agree with you. But I got the opportunity. I have been collecting bayonets and this is my target.