ANTIQUE JAPANESE SAMURAI SWORD OLD KOTO KATANA YAMATO Start Price USD 1,749.99 Current Price USD 1,749.99 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price USD 2,249.99 Reserve Price - Start Time Tuesday, August 26, 2008 End Time Tuesday, September 02, 2008 Location San Diego, CA See more about 'ANTIQUE JAPANESE SAMURAI SWORD OLD KOTO KATANA YAMATO' Description I AM A LONG TIME TRUSTED EBAY POWER SELLER I have been dealing in antiques, art and collectibles for over 35 years and selling on eBay for over 7 years. I treat every customer like family. Please read my about me page, and check out my feedback. My listings all include vital information which you will find informative and cover most of your questions. Please take a minute to read everything. Thank You, Christian Chaffee (619) 299-3448. ITEM DESCRIPTION   I am pleased to be able to offer 5 nice old Japanese swords here on eBay. I have sold a number of genuine old Japanese swords on eBay over the last 9 years, and I have received good feedback on every one. I am not an expert, but do my best to describe each sword, and include many clear crisp photos, and accurate measurements, so you can know what you are bidding on.   I am working hard to raise money fast, because my sales have been slow, so I have to sell my Japanese swords :(    I am satisfied with a reasonable profit, so I am starting each sword at a price I think I can get if I were to offer it to our local Japanese sword shark, and I am including a Buy it Now price at 50% more than the opening bid (and limiting the buy it now price to no more than $500 above the opening bid price), so I don't have to wait for auctions to end before seeing some money.  I will also include free shipping with buy it now, as long as I get fast payment... which must arrive in 48 hours from the time I email you with your invoice... which means payment by money order or cashier's check will need to be sent by overnight mail, and sent out immediately.   This is an old sword, which has beautiful old mounts, and a very interesting old blade, which I am sure dates to the Koto period (before 1596), and could be much older.   I don't think the mounts are as old as the blade, but they have good age. The tsuba is iron with a cut out pattern. The menuki are golden bees or wasps. The handle wrapping is in good condition, with no breaks, but some light wear. The fuchi is made of a soft metal, likely shakudo, with golden flowers. The saya is old, and has some losses, but is still beautiful, with black and gold decoratrion. There is a small missing wedge shapped piece of wood near the mouth of the saya, and the original horn fitting which was at the mouth is missing, so the saya will need some repairs. The kojiri looks to be made of silver, with a dragonfly.   What makes this sword special is the blade, which is beautiful and very old. The blade is in a nice old polish with some old surface blemishes, but is in otherwise excellent condition. The temper line is very visible on both sides of the blade, and runs along the entire cutting edge, and wraps evenly around the tip. The temper line is bright and pronounced. The sword is very enjoyable as it is, but will be even more impressive with a new polish.   Once polished, this blade is going to be a real beauty. The blade has a few fine thin openings which are normally found on blades of this age due to subsequient polishing. The blade is very old as evidenced by coal black color of the tang, and three holes showing it was remounted a long time ago, and the end of the tang, which is flat. The sword is lost it's signature, but I would guess it is from the Yamato school based on the straight temper line, and high iorimune (peaked spine). The tang was well shaped when it was shortened, so it shows whoever did the work, cared about doing a good job.    I do guarantee that this sword blade has no fatal flaws. All 5 swords I am listing on eBay now are old, so I am selling them as is. I leave the translations and authentications of inscriptions to bidders, but I have included my best guess as to what the translations read.  I have done my best to describe the sword and blade, so please consider my photos the final word on describing the sword. Please feel free to ask any questions, and I will get back to you with answers as soon as I can. ITEM MEASUREMENTS This blade has the following measurements: nagasa (cutting edge): 26 9/32 inches, tang length: 7 13/16 inches, sori (curvature): 7/16 of an inch, width of blade at habaki: 1 3/16 inches, thickness of blade at habaki: 7/32 of an inch, width of blade at the yakote: 25/32 of an inch, and thickness of blade at yokote: 5/32 of an inch.   THIS ITEMS CONDITION REPORT This is in as described condition, as shown in the photos. ITEM WEIGHT This weighs about 3 1/2 lbs. before being packed. If you need shipping information, please see Shipping information below. SHIPPING INFORMATION I will be sending your item from San Diego, CA 92116. I normally send most smaller items under 2 pounds, by USPS Priority Mail with value insurance. If you want your item shipped by another method, please email me as soon as possible. Most items will be shipped via DHL, ground service. I can take large and heavy items to Greyhound which can ship these items fast and economically, but you will need to pick them up at your local Greyhound Package Express station- not available at all greyhound stations. I do charge $20 to take large items to Greyhound to cover the fuel and time required to do this. Please note that all shipping cost estimates are just that...estimates. I am normally accurate, but if your item is large or fragile, it may cost more to ship it than I had thought. You will be responsible to pay additional costs if necessary, and I will provide you with proof of the additional shipping costs, although this rarely happens. If I have over-charged you on shipping costs, I will include a refund check with your item. PACKING AND HANDLING CHARGES I never gouge my customers on handling or packing costs. I do charge a minimum of $1 for very small items, with the cost increasing depending on the materials required to pack. The larger and more fragile the item, the more it costs me to pack it properly. If an item is fragile, I pack it to survive the mailing to the best of my ability. On expensive fragile items, I will need to double box them. This will require additional labor and material costs. I would rather pack your item properly to make sure that the item arrives intact, than to later have to deal with a claim, which is a time consuming process. I care about the items I sell, and want them to arrive safely and in one piece. EVERY ITEM IS GUARANTEED TO BE AS DESCRIBED Every item I offer is in original, as-found condition, with only the normal wear that you would expect to occur from normal use and age. You are guaranteed that there are no repairs, and no alterations, and no damage unless I specifically mention them in my condition report above. I SELL ONLY GENUINE ORIGINAL ITEMS I do my very best to accurately represent each and every item I sell. I do not sell fakes or reproductions of any kind unless they are clearly described as such. I guarantee every item I sell to be authentic, and to be made in the time period for which its style was popular. I have been buying and selling all types of items since the late 1960's so I usually spot reproductions, fakes and alterations with ease. I welcome input from dealers and collectors in specialized areas, as it helps me to make sure my listings are accurate. RECEIVING YOUR EBAY INVOICE If you are the winning bidder, I will send you an eBay invoice with the total cost including shipping and insurance, packing and materials, and any additional related costs. I usually get this done by the third day after the auction. CUSTOMERS FROM FOREIGN COUNTRIES Please send payment in US dollars. ALL payments are held until payment clears before the item is shipped out. If you must pay me by Paypal, I ask that you email me in advance of bidding. I will also follow any and all special instructions you may have in regard to the shipping of your parcel. Payments received more than 10 days after I have sent you the shipping costs are considered late. PAYING WITH PAYPAL I normally do not accept payment by Paypal, as I work on a very small margin. If paying me by Paypal is absolutely necessary, please email me before you bid. CALIFORNIA STATE SALES TAX All California residents must pay 7 1/4- 7 3/4 % sales tax, or provide me with a valid resale number. I am sorry, but there are no exceptions to this law. PAYMENT FOR ITEMS I expect payment to arrive in 7 days from the date of your invoice. All bank checks, cashier’s checks and money orders are held 2 weeks before your item is scheduled to be shipped out.Most other money orders are shipped out immediately. SHIPPING OF ITEMS I do shipping at least once a week- usually Tuesday or Wednesday.I normally send small items USPS Priority Mail in the US. If the item is very large or very heavy it can be shipped using DHL, UPS or Greyhound bus lines, but you would need to pick up the item at your local Greyhound bus station which has package express services available. SHIPPING COST SAVINGS If you plan on bidding on multiple items, I will hold your item here until the end of the upcoming auction so I can ship both items together. I will pass on 100% of the savings to you in the form of reduced shipping costs which will show on the invoice for the additional item. PAYMENTS ON EXPENSIVE ITEMS If you need some time to pay for an expensive item, you must email me for approval prior to bidding. With prior approval, I will accept 1/3 down to be received in 7 days from invoice date, 1/3 to be received within 30 days from invoice date, and the remaining 1/3, (totaling the balance due) in no more than 60 days from invoice date. There will be a small (5% of the transaction total) charge for storage and administration. FEEDBACK I enjoy leaving you great feedback as soon as our transaction is complete to let everyone on eBay know you do business in a responsible way. I leave feedback after you have left me feedback. I feel that until you have left me good feedback, our transaction has not been completed. LATE FEES If you win an auction, I expect you to pay me quickly within the time frames shown above, or I may consider your payment late. If you do not pay for your item, I have an obligation to leave you negative feedback to warn other eBay members about your inability to do business in a responsible way. If you pay me late, I may at my discretion charge you an additional administrative fee and storage fee to cover monitoring your account and storing your item, so please do your part and I will do mine. REFUND AND RETURN POLICY If I misrepresent an item, such that it is worth less money due to an omission or error in my listing, you may return it for a full refund including all shipping costs so you do not lose a dime. An example of this would be undisclosed existing damage, like a chip. If the item description is in error, but it has no effect on it's monetary value, I may refuse to allow a refund. An example would be if the measurements were slightly off.... if I state a vase is 10 1/2 inches tall, and you discover it is 10 3/8 tall, a refund would be refused. If your item is damaged in shipping, the shipper is the cause and responsible to make the refund. This normally takes from 1 to 8 months depending on the shipper. You will need to save the box to show the shipper, as it is the proof that they are responsible. Shippers do not accept parcels packed in damaged boxes as a rule, so that any damage discovered is evidenced by damage to the box. Place a Bid!