Hey all. Since you guys really liked my type 94 I figured I would show off my NCO sword too. I received this piece from a coworker of my mom's at the VA. When my mom told her coworker that I was collecting Japanese items for a display he wanted to show me his father's sword that he had brought home from WW2. This gentleman's father was a member of the 22nd Marines and served with them on the islands of Roi-Namur and Kwajalein and was transferred to another Marine unit during the invasion of Tarawa, which was to be his father's last battle of the war. Apparently this sword had come from Tarawa with a nasty story behind it which kept the gentleman's children from wanting this sword. It had been in his father's attic since 1947 and when his father passed away in the 1980's he inherited this sword along with his father's Marine items he had brought home. It then went into this gentleman's attic until my mom had told him about me and my collection. When I saw it I was shocked to find that the sword was all matching but it had seen some better days. The gentleman wanted to repatriate this sword back to Japan but upon learning that it was a machine made blade he changed his mind and decided to find a collector to have it. When I offered what I thought was a fair price he told me he didn't want to sell it since that was his father's wish. Instead he gave it to me as a gift making me promise to honor his father's story, service, and wishes about this sword and from then on this sword has sat proudly among my collection. Thank you all for listening and all comments are welcome.
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Here's another picture. -
Looks good. Type 95 IJA NCO sword as you know. Aluminum tsuka, top latch, iron tsuba. If you can provide either a photo of the serial number on the blade or the drag shoe at the end of the scabbard we can tell you if it's a Tokyo First Arsenal piece or one from the Nagoya Arsenal. Are there any stampings on the black metal fuchi (collar) between the end of the tsuka and the tsuba?
Regards,
StuComment
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I should have added that if you don't have a photo available then just hold the sword horizontal and if the blade serial number can be read with the cutting edge down then it's a Tokyo piece. If the serial number can only be read with the cutting edge upward then the piece is from the Nagoya Arsenal.
Regards,
StuComment
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Sorry about that Stu. The serial number reads with the cutting edge down so I guess it is a Tokyo piece. Also the piece underneath the tsuba has no markings on it (maybe just bad strikes at the armory?).Last edited by burb1989; 10-14-2014, 07:02 PM.Comment
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Yes, that's a Tokyo piece. As the fuchi is iron it's not unusual for the stampings to be light or absent. Had they been present perhaps we could have determined which of the various makers supplied the piece to the arsenal. No worries though, it's an authentic example to display with your other Japanese militaria.
Regards,
StuComment
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If you want to learn a little more about your sword have a look here.
http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...d.php?t=593578
Regards,
StuComment
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Thanks Stu for the info. My sword's story is a pretty bad one but I loved it despite that. From what the gentleman's father had told him he was with a small group of Marines who were approaching a burned out machine gun nest when a soldier came running out of the nest with this sword drawn and decapitated a Marine a few feet from this gentleman's father. He proceeded to attack this gentleman's father but was shot in the head by a pistol. The gentleman's father picked up the sword, cut the sheathe from the soldier's belt, and fastened it to his backpack. He ended up carrying it with him until he was hurt by a bullet to his knee, effectively taking him out of Tarawa. I'm honored that I get to preserve this piece of history along with its story for my family and future generations.Comment
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