1 antique Japanese Samurai wakizashi sword with hard-to-find folded-over signature available.  This desirable sword would make an important addition to any collection.

The tang/nakago on this tanto has a rare folded-over signature.  It's a folded-over inlay--which is a much more difficult signature inlay.  Very hard to find.  This sword is signed 'Bishu Osafune Akiyoshi Tadamitsu'.  The sayagaki (saya writing) shows Tadamitsu as well. 

The blade measures 18 7/8" (47.9 cm) from blade tip to the habaki.  

The nioi-based hamon is suguha, and is exceptional.  I wasn't able to capture the hamon very well in the photos due to the old state of polish.  In hand, the hamon is defined, and beautiful.  With sword in hand, as your eye follows the hamon up the blade, the straight hamon splits every so often into to parallel lines for 6-9 mm--and then joins back together.  Additional complexity occurs both just above the hamon, and just below.  See photos 11 & 12 above for a close look at this complexity.  In polish, this sword would be exceptional. 

This vintage Japanese Samurai sword is in old Japanese polish with occasional thin, surface oxidation.  The hamon/temper line and boshi are perfectly healthy.  There are no ware openings of any mentionable size on this sword.  There are tiny nail-catcher type nicks at the sword tip, but there is plenty of distance between the boshi and the kissaki edge.  This sword is guaranteed against fatal flaws of any kind.  The saya has a chip on one seam, and one spot the size of a U.S. dime coin that has dings/deep scratches in it. 

I recommend taking this sword to Shinsa--it is healthy, unique, and of exceptional quality. 



This Japanese Samurai sword, with its very rare folded-over inlayed signature, would make an important addition to any collection.