WWII Knives

1 antique World War II Japanese Samurai army officer’s Muratato shin-gunto sword available.  A sword in this condition would make an important addition to any collection.

The tang has stamped kanji.  Murata Tsuneyoshi developed the “new Japanese-European combined sword system”.  

All military fittings are of excellent quality.  The seppa, tsuba, etc. all have the matching assembly numbers ’25’.  The blade measures 26 1/8″ from blade tip to notch in the blade spine.  This fine sword has a metal brown/red-lacquered scabbard.

This Muratato has a pierced tsuba.  The handle/tsuka has a tachi curvature to it.  

This sarute/tassel loop has a blue/brown company grade tassel.  

Here is information from Ohmura’s studies:

Murata-tō

 Tsuneyoshi Murata an army Major General Baron, is the expert of shooting. He developed the famous “Murata Rifle”.
 Then, he aspired after improvement of a Guntō and made the Guntō to the trial himself using the saber metal (sword
steel of German Solingen) of stock of the Tokyo Artillery Arsenal.
 Since this sword cut very well, he completed the blade which instruction of Kanenori Miyamoto, Sukekane Yokoyama, etc.
was received, Sweden steel and a Japanes steel ratio were dissolved by 6 to 4, and he dissolved mincement and this at
1,500 degrees C, and carried out One-piece forging (Ichimai-Gitae) and carried out oil hardening. The bone of the head
of a pig was splendidly cut in October, Meiji 24 (1891) using two blades by the sharpness examination in an Arsenal.
 Since there were no abnormalities in two blades, it depended on this result and this blade was adopted as the Guntō.
 This blade was cheap, since an officer was also easy to come to hand, it was greatly used by Nissin and the
Russo-Japanese War, and it was proved that it was the practical use Guntō strongly turned off well to rust.
 This blade was manufactured in the army “Tōkyō Artillery Arsenal (Tōkyō Hōhei Kōshō)” 
 The Mei cut with a “Shōjū (Rifle)-Kanemasa”, carried out the archaic script of the 4 characters of the Tsuneyoshi
Murata to the bottom of it, and struck the stamp compounded to 2 characters.
 Name of an era and the serial number are stamped on the reverse side of a Tang.
 In addition, the Mei of “Kanemasa” or “Murata Tsuneyoshi ” was cut by the sword which Tsuneyoshi Murata forge himself.
 In order that there might be no “Hamon” in the mass-produced blade, evaluation of a sword community was not obtained.

The blade which Yoshitsune Murata forge himself

Blade length: 83.185cm. Edge length: 66.357cm. Tang length: 16.827cm. Curvature(Sori): 0.714㎝

The blade style is “Kogarasumaru”. It seems that Hamon was drawn by etching. All the blades that he forge cannot be
found by this type. It seems that there was much ordinary structure. Three Mekugi holes mean that the Shirasaya, the
saber, etc and the Koshirae changed.
 It was dedicated by the Type-98 Koshirae, without touching a Mekugi hole. For the reason, Habaki has twice as many
ordinary length as this due to a Mekugi hole.

(Photograph offer:Mr.Frank Stand in U.S.A)

“Mukade-giri-maru”which the Tsuneyoshi Murata made the model of the Murata-tō. 

Mukade-giri-maru: 1000 or more are a front Tachi. 

 The celebrated sword of the tradition said for the Hidesato Fujiwara to have received from Ryūjin. Now, this Tachi is
a treasured sword of the Ise Shrine. Major General Murata made this Mukade-giri-maru the model of the Murata-tō.

His Imperial Highness Prince Chichibu’s practice sword (reserve)

Edge length: 66.7cm. Curvature(Sori):1.6㎝

  ← Mei: The Tachi for Guntō way practice was imitated.
           This was manufactured in Tōkyō Artillery Arsenal 
    
Ura Mei: August, 1933 lucky day Serial № 116 →
          Tōkyō Artillery Arsenal trademark stamp

 When it guessed from a Mei and Emperor Taishō’s second Imperial prince
 (next Prince Chichibu) entered a military academy, this sword was
 presented to practice of the Guntō. 

 The Murata-tō which imitated the Mukade-giri-maru was presented to the Imperial-Family officer. There is no telling
who did the sword making when. After Major General Murata retired, this sword was modeled on the Tachi which the
Imperial-Family officer was using for practice of a Guntō, and was forged.
 It is a precious sword which can check the figure of the sword of the starting point of the Murata-tō.

Mass-production Murata-tō

Edge length: 61.5cm. Curvature(Sori): 0.9cm. Hi (Slot) which pierced through all blades and Middle-Kissaki.

← Mei; Shōjū (Rifle)-Kanemasa

Ura Mei: October, Meiji 23?(1890?) → 
Serial № 7-17 

Hard to read this sword tang Mei(signature) because the tang is
 rusty. Furthermore, an exact period cannot be read because of a
 Mekugi hole.
  If 1890 (?) years are right, it will be called the trial production
 blade or  a trial production mass-production blade before the army
 adoption in 1891.
  The stamp which compounded the archaic script of the Tsuneyoshi
 Murata to two characters is not found.