Original Item: Only One Available. The end of WWII marked the beginning of the sword ownership ban in Japan. By law, Japanese citizens were forbidden to own swords. General McArthur did not want the general population to be able to arm again. Most soldiers and citizens surrendered their swords to the American occupying forces. The Americans destroyed a large number of swords by dumping them into the ocean or by melting them. But a small percentage made its way back to the United States and into the collector market.

This very good service used condition example is a genuine WWII Japanese Type 95 NCO Samurai Sword or katana, with aluminum handle construction and machine made fullered blade. Blade is 26 3/8 inches long, with an overall length of 36 3/8 inches. The grip wrapping and menuki are cast-formed out of aluminum, and then painted to give the illusion of fabric wrappings and gilt menuki. This example comes complete with its original scabbard, which has a great service worn look to it.

The design copies the typical WWII Imperial Japanese Army style fittings, known as the "New Military Sword" ( 新軍刀 - shin guntou) style, with a single hanger ring and bolster on the scabbard. It is said that during battle soldiers would not use the ring but rather would stick the sword through the belt the same way as the Samurai in ancient times. NCO Katanas were issued to soldiers who did not want to take their family sword to battle or who came from poor families that did not have swords to pass down through the generations.

All NCO swords were numbered. This example is numbered 153225, while the throat of the scabbard is numbered 44662. Most swords do not have matching numbers because somewhere along the life of the sword the scabbard was changed. This could either be to to loss, damage, or just being misplaced at arsenal. Next to the serial on the blade is the 東 (To) marking for Tokyo Arsenal.

The Fuchi (grip collar) of the sword is marked with information related to the swords production and inspection. While holding the sword hilt up, the first symbol on the left is the logo of the Suya Sho Ten company. This is a Tokyo company that was used by the Suikosha, or Navy Supply Center. The company mainly made gunto koshirae during WWII. This company started back in the Meiji era and had a long history of making koshirae, including those for members of the Imperial family and many high ranking officers and diplomats. This indicates that they probably produced the sword, or at least were the company that procured the components.

To the right of the logo is 東 for inspection by Tokyo arsenal, and all the way to the right is the "bullseye in a star" logo of Tokyo arsenal, where the sword was put into arsenal for issue.

The sword is complete with the metal locking spring tab that secures the blade to the scabbard. This prevents the sword from falling when the soldier is running. Traditionally this function is assigned to the Habaki (blade collar). But machine made swords like this one do not have the accuracy of manufacturing that enable the Habaki to perform such a function. The metal loop on the pommel is still present and in very good condition.

The condition of this sword overall is very good, though it definitely shows signs of long service, particularly on the blade and scabbard. The blade shows post arsenal sharpening, and has scattered small nicks on the edge. It is still quite sharp, so it should definitely be handled with care. The blade surfaces show evidence of past oxidation and subsequent cleaning, but overall still looks quite nice and is solid.

The brown paint on the pommel is very well retained, and correctly does not run off the faux "wrappings", so we see no reason to think it has been repainted. There is also still most of the yellow highlighting on the "menuki" on the grip and on the cherry blossom on the pommel. The tsuba (crossguard) is the mid-late war simplified iron MARU GATA (round) shape, with no holes to reduce weight. The "seppa" around the cross guard are in good shape, and not part of the castings, and the blade collar (habaki) is the standard brass.

The scabbard is in very good shape, with no major bends or dents, however the paint is quite worn, probably retained at about 40%. The rest of the surface shows a lovely oxidized steel patina. It still retains the scabbard ring and throat, and has a fantastic worn look to it.

There are some Chinese replicas of these out there, however this sword is definitely genuine. The spacers (seppa) are cast and rounded, while the replicas are crudely cut. The scabbard is painted the correct green color, and the spacing from the top to the hanging ring is the correct length. Overall the fit and finish is definitely far above a replica, which can be seen in the photos.

Overall a lovely service used condition WW2 Type 95 NCO Katana with a sharp blade and unmatched scabbard. A lovely example that will appreciate in value over the coming years. Ready to display!

Specifications:
Blade Length: 26 3/8"
Blade Style: Katana
Overall length: 36 3/8“
Scabbard Length: 28 7/8"