Original Item: Only One Available. Purchased recently from a private collector, this is an high grade wartime production Japanese Naval officer Katana in the Pattern 1937 Kai-Gunto setting. A Kai-Guntō (海軍刀, naval sword) is a weapon and symbol of rank used by the Imperial Japanese Navy during the WWII Period. This is a great example, complete with a sharkskin covered scabbard, and shows only light use, without much damage or wear. It does look like the fittings were cleaned over the years, which has worn away their original finish.

The blade is in near excellent condition and is still VERY sharp, and should definitely be handled with care. We can not see any dents or bends on the entire length of the edge. There is some scuffing to the sies of the blade on the last third, consistent with light use during service. Blade length is 25 ¼ inches and overall length 35 ¾ inches. It has a factory forged steel blade, with a single mounting hole in the standard long FUTSU 普通 (regular) shaped NAKAGO (tang) with a HAAGARI (asymmetrical rounded) nakago-jiri. Most we see of these have a cut tang, but on this higher end katana they seem to have taken a bit more care. The tang itself is marked a Naval ANCHOR stamp, indicating manufacture at Toyokawa Naval Arsenal (豊川海軍工廠, Toyokawa kaigun kōshō). There is no signature (MEI), as is usual for later war pieces, so this blade is considered 無銘 (mumei), or "anonymous".

The blade retains the original factory finish and simulated straight (SUGU) hamon. There is also a simulated YOKOTE and BOSHI, and given the total absence of rust on the blade, we believe it to be made from Stainless steel, which was popular for the rust-inducing ocean environment. There is some light oxidation on the tang, but even stainless steel can rust if exposed to wood for a long period. Japanese Kai-Gunto naval officers swords are somewhat rare, given that they usually went down with the ships. This particular example has the higher grade 1937 Pattern fittings with a sharkskin shagreen covered scabbard, indicating this may have been made for a higher ranking naval officer.

It has a heavy copper plated brass TSUBA (cross guard) with two brass SEPPA (spacers) and two large stylized O-SEPPA (large spacers) surrounding it, which are also copper plated brass. These originally would have had a "blacked" finish, but that is now mostly worn away, showing the copper plating and brass base metal. The TSUKA (handle) has two gilt brass Cherry-Blossom MENUKI (grip decorations), and a nice brass KABUTO-GANE (end cap), which has copper cherry blossoms on it, though there is no end loop. It has a very good condition black oilcloth grip with complete golden brown ITO (cloth binding) showing light soiling and wear, and a fine decorative plated non-magnetic collar (FUCHI). This is also brass with copper cherry blossoms, and it looks like both it and the end cap were originally plated bright silver.

Condition of the blade is near excellent, indicating only light use. As typical of the pattern, Cherry Blossom motifs appear on many of the fittings. The handle is tight to the blade, though due to wear and age the cross guard and spacers wobble. There is a single broken MEKUGI securing peg, which looks to be original.

The Wood scabbard (SAYA) is wrapped in lacquered sharkskin shagreen, and has all silver plated brass fittings except for the KOIGUCHI (scabbard mouth), which is plated copper. As with most we see, the fittings are a bit loose on the scabbard, as the glue holding them in place has degraded over time. The scabbard is covered in sharkskin shagreen, which was coated with black URUSHI lacquer and then sanded down to give it a great look. It is still in great shape, with almost all of the lacquer intact. There is no splitting along the seam, and this is definitely one of the best sharkskin covered scabbards that we have seen in some time. Both hanger rings are still present, making this a really great example of a high grade scabbard.

The fuchi, tsuba, and O-Seppa are marked with western number 1 3 8. and there is a faint partial marking inside the scabbard. The end of the tsuka is marked with 一 三 八 faintly in pencil, which requires a magnifier to see, which are the Japanese numerals "1 3 8". This indicates that this set of KOSHIRAE (fittings) are a matched set, all made for this specific blade.

This Imperial Japanese Navy Pattern 1937 Kai-Gunto retains a notably well-preserved factory-made blade, Toyokawa Naval Arsenal anchor marking, matching-number fittings, and its higher-grade sharkskin-covered scabbard. The blade remains very sharp with only light scuffing and minor oxidation to the tang, while the fittings show finish loss from age and past cleaning. The grip remains tight, although the tsuba and seppa have some movement and the single mekugi is broken. The lacquered sharkskin scabbard is especially well preserved, retaining both hanger rings, nearly all of its black lacquer, and no significant splitting along the seam. The repeated number 138 on the fuchi, tsuba, O-seppa, tsuka, and faintly within the scabbard confirms that the koshirae components were assembled as a matched set, making this a particularly cohesive example of a wartime Japanese naval officer’s sword.

Specifications:
Blade Length: 25 ¼"
Blade Shape: Shinogi-Zukuri (鎬造)
Handle Length: 9 ½”
Overall length: 35 ¾“
Scabbard Length: 27 ¼"

It has been over one thousand years ago that the art of making swords appeared in Japan. The swordsmiths of the time may not have known it but they were creating a legendary sword. The Samurai sword has seen combat in many battlefields. From the early days of the Samurai warrior to the fierce battles in the South Pacific during WWII.

Each hand-made Samurai sword is unique because it is forged from steel stock. A tremendous amount of work is dedicated to creating these pieces. They were an instrument of war as much as a beautiful artifact to adorn a room.

The Samurai sword has grown to be one of the most highly desired military antiques.