WWII SAMURAI SWORD INFANTRY PHILLIPINES
John Lewis Matteo. 01/11/1926. Born in Scranton PA. Joined the Army 1944. Honorable discharge in 1947. Did in fact transport four Japanese Samurai Swords from his duty station in the Pacific Theater after WWI. That’s how I acquired all four swords. Tom Walbridge, 12/15/2021
John Lewis Matteo. 01/11/1926. Born in Scranton PA. Joined the Army 1944. Honorable discharge in 1947. Did in fact transport four Japanese Samurai Swords from his duty station in the Pacific Theater after WWI. That’s how I acquired all four swords. Tom Walbridge, 12/15/2021
Inherited
Maybe
Dear Scott,
Thank you for contacting Mearto with your appraisal inquiry. My sincere apologies for the delay with the appraisal.
The presented object appears to be a modified Japanese "Shin Gunto" officer's sword with a blade length of 32 1/2 inches. This sword is mainly a Shin Gunto sword with an addition of a tsuba and the scabbard is sadly in a bad condition. The blade appears to be older because of the workmanship and the shape of the tip. This weapon was used in WWII by a higher-ranked Japanese soldier.
Comparable objects were recently offered and sold on the international auction market.
This piece is in good condition and there is no serious damage visible in the images provided.
A fair market estimation would be between 200 to 400 USD.
This estimate is based on actual recent past recorded auction sales of comparable items. Retail "asking prices" can be higher and may vary.
With kind regards,
George
George, Here are extra photos. Hopefully they will help since I don't have availability of the swords at this time. Note I tried to phase/contrast the Japanese symbols on the tang to enhance the characters but a picture of a picture and scan diminishes quality as you well know. I have one pic of the blade that shows the HAZ/flow marks quite well. The pattern of 3 hits and then a soft hit appears more like human hammering than production.
Please let me know if these helped in your continued appraisal. If not I can call the owner and have him come in at a later date. Thanks for everything. Scott Hoover