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 by way of "War Trophies" brought home by returning USGIs. The majority of Japanese swords at large are the result these actions.

This service used 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 1/4 inches long, with an overall length of 36 1/4inches. The grip wrapping and menuki are cast-formed, and then painted to give the illusion of fabric wrappings and gilt menuki.

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.

All NCO swords were numbered. This example has a matching serial number 134306 on both the blade and the throat of the scabbard. Most swords do not have matching numbers because somewhere along the life of the sword the scabbard was changed. It also has a great cloth "capture tag" attached to the pommel ring, which were attached when the sword was turned in post war. These are very rare to see, as the tags usually do not hold up well over the years.

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.

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.

The condition of this sword is very good, with the blade showing very little use, and just a bit of staining. There is some dried grease on it, and just a few small edge nicks, making this one of the best blades we have seen on an NCO sword in recent times. The brown paint on the hilt has partly worn away, as it did not really stick well to the aluminum. However it still has traces of the correct gold highlighting on the "menuki" and cherry blossom on the pommel.

The steel scabbard still has lot of the original olive green paint present, with the expected oxidation where it has worn away. The wooden interior also is somewhat degraded, and there is a piece of wood currently loose inside the scabbard, which can make the blade hard to remove.

There are some Chinese replicas of these out there, however this sword is definitely genuine. It has the correct arsenal markings on the hilt collar (fuchi) and blade, and 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 very good condition WW2 Type 95 NCO Katana that will appreciate in value over the coming years. Ready to display!

Specifications:
Blade Length: 26 3/8"
Blade Style: Katana
Overall length: 36 1/2“
Scabbard Length: 29"