Antique Nihonto Japanese Sword

龍門派是鎌倉後期到南北朝期間在大和國吉野郡龍門莊居住的刀匠們的總稱。也有認為龍門為千手院派分流的說法；龍門一派最有名的刀工是延吉，但是一般他在銘的作品極其少見。龍門莊是個好地方，有歷史典故，有櫻花美景；它是奈良興福寺的領地，內有龍門寺和吉野山口神社，龍門派刀匠是作為這些寺社的隸屬而鍛刀，也有說法說他們為南北朝時南朝武士鍛刀。大反，刀姿優美，地鐵柔練；明確的小互目相交刃文是其特徵。和其他大和傳流派相比稍有不同，十分典雅且富有魅力。 Others: 

This is an interesting topic with regards to NBTHK paper levels and their effect on values from the Nihonto forum which I would like to share: Source: http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/12048-paper-levels-and-their-effect-on-value/page-2?hl=%20ryumon%20%20nobuyoshi In summary: Some years ago when the Fittings Museum collection was being auctioned at Christie's Darcy went to New York to look at the swords and the sword was attributed to Senjuin by the fittings museum but had no other papers and he  bought it thinking it would attribute to another smith.       http://www.christies... ... 400c019579 GBP 21,510 + 5378 (25% buyers premium) = GBP 26,999 (US$35,000 ~ 38000 depending on exchange rate) After sending it in for Shinsa and i t papered to Ryumon Nobuyoshi.  Now, potential buyers who went out and sought opinions were told that the price of the sword was "too high" because it was "only Tokubetsu Hozon." People were assessing the sword by the

Gokaden  ***Five basic style of Japanese Sword***  From ancient times, there were five geographical areas which produced a great number of swordsmiths. These areas were blessed with several good conditions, such as in political aspect, in business and rich in raw materials for making sword.  As a result, many smiths flew in these core part continuously from all over the country and brought about a great advance in research and development in Katana sword making.  Each producing district established their own style and initiated their technique into posterity and also influenced local smiths a great deal. These are the five main districts where they showed distinctive competency above all.  Since the start of my hobby, I have only managed to find the first two and there are 3 more dens to go. 1. Mino-den - Naoe Shizu 2. Yamato-den - Ryumon Nobuyoshi 3. Soushu-den 4. Bizen-den 5. Yamashiro-den

For those who needs help with regards to Nihonto, you can contact Mr. Paul Martin http://www.thejapanesesword.com Born in England, Paul Martin began Karate at the age of seven  and in the years that followed managed to gain Dan grades in three styles of Karate. He went on to represent the English International Karate Team and was English Champion in 1992,1993 and 1995. In 1993 he joined The British Museum in London, eventually achieving his goal of joining the Department of Japanese Antiquities. There, he cared for and studied the Japanese sword and armour collections under the guidance of Victor Harris (a student of Dr. Kanzan Sato, and translator of Miyamoto Musashi’s  Book of Five Rings ), and with Victor's encouragement enrolled in a Kendo class. Paul currently holds 3rd Dan Karate, 4th Dan Kendo and 4th Dan Iaido. Paul has also presented swords on BBC TV, BBC Radio 4, Discovery Channel ( WeaponsMasters  and  Some Assembly Required ), The History Channel, Lo

N.B.T.H.K. (Nihon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kai) The N.B.T.H.K. (Nihon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kai) was founded in 1948 and is commonly recognized by collectors. They operate the Japanese Sword Museum in Tokyo. The NBTHK shinsa are held only in Japan. The names of their origami have changed over time. The N.B.T.H.K. issued the following types of origami starting in the 1950's. KICHO   (white papers) - "Important Work" TOKUBETSU KICHO   (green papers) - "Extraordinary Work" KOSHU TOKUBETSU KICHO   (blue papers) - "Special Extraordinary Work JUYO TOKEN   - "Very Important Work" TOKUBETSU JUYO   - "Extraordinarily Important Work" This ranking scale was changed in the 1980's. The current system of origami includes the following types: HOZON   - "Worthy of Preservation" TOKUBETSU HOZON   - "Extraordinarily Worthy of Preservation" JUYO TOKEN   - "Very Important Work" TOKUBETSU JUYO   -