BOOKS WITH JAPANESE TEXT All books are new copies and in hard covers unless otherwise stated
'Out of Print' in blue means there is still some stock left but no more after I sell out
1.
NIHON TOKO JITEN by Fujishiro. volume 1 Koto Blades, 6.5"x8.5" slip case. 619pp. all oshigata of the better known koto smiths with ratings. Indispensable to the serious collector. Volume 2 out of print with no date for reprining. 'Hawleys Japanese Sword-smiths' is indexed to this set. GBP125
2.
No Title
3.
HIZENTO BIBOROKU [Hizen Sword Notebook] by Yokoyama, 2006. 9x12" slip case, 547pp of which 184pp are oshigata of nakago and signatures,Covers all the Hizen Tadayoshi smiths and their major pupils in detail by aHizen expert. GBP240
4.
SEIKADO MEITO HYAKU SEN (One Hundred Fine Swords from the Seikado Bunko Art Museum). 8.75" x12" slip case, 237pp with black & white plates illustrating 100 blades together with superb oshigata of the kissaki and monouchi area for each blade.There is an English index for the plates. GBP160
5.
MUROMACHI-KI MINO TOKO NO KENKYU by Suzuki. 8.5"x11.75", dust wrapper, 2006. 377pp all art paper with oshigata of tangs or blades of koto Mino swords on 280 pages, plus genealogical tables, maps and other illustration in the text. No shinto smiths covered, a useful book as it covers all the various groups in Mino, not just Seki, there is only Cox's book on Mino-to (#160) in print apart from this. GBP46
6.
ZUKAN TOMEI SORAN by Iida. 7.5"x10.5" slip case, 491pp showing 2200 oshigata of the signatures of over 1000 smiths; some oshigata are cut down to the characters only and each is shown with province & period plus an index. A useful book. GBP100
7.
GYO-KEN (August Swords) by Ogasawara. 8.75"x11.5" slip case, 135pp including 23 colour and 52 black & white full page plates illustrating 50 Imperial swords (both blades & mountings) from the Nara period to the Meiji, with partial drawings of the hamon of each sword. The blade plates are rather dark. English index. GBP90
8.
Hanayaka na Nihonto - Bizen Ichimonji - Sano Museum Catalogue 8.75"x11.75" cloth bound with a slip case, 85pp illus-trating 52 Ichimonji blades by photographic plates and mostly with oshigata as well, 18 koshirae are also shown in colour. There is a brief 2pp English index. GBP32
9
YUMEI KOTO TAIKAN by Iimura. 8.5"x11.5" slip case, 840pp with oshigata and photographic plates on 696pp illustrating about 1000 koto blades from well over 400 smiths with explanations; this and the following book are the best books for blade oshigata on this list (together with the O/P Shinshinto Taikan). GBP290
10.
SHINTO TAIKAN by Iimura. 2 volumes 8.5"x 11.5" slip cases. Vol.1 917pp of which 867pp are plates illustrating oshigata of blades by 315 shinto smiths. Vol.2 732pp showing photographic plates of 286 blades, most of which are in volume 1 as oshigata, plus 85 plates of horimono by various smiths and other information. GBP350
11.
No Title
12.
KANZAN TOKEN KOZA by Sato. 4 Volumes 9"x12.5" slip cases. about 85% of each volume are illustrations of blades by oshigata and b&w photographic plates, there are also many illustrations (kanji, filemarks etc) in the text. This set covers shinto & shin-shinto smiths in great detail.
VOLUME 1 - 319pp This volume deals with the Umetada, Horikawa & Mishina schools.
VOLUME 2 - 360pp of which 204pp covers the Osaka smiths, the remainder deals with Mino, Bizen, Gassan Sadakazu etc.
VOLUME 3 - 522pp of which 167pp is on the Yasutsugu school, other schools covered include the Nagasone, Suishinshi & Yamaura.
VOLUME 4 - 449pp covering Hizen, Satsuma, Echizen, Kaga & others. This fine set is packed with illustrations and information, the kodogu volumes are out of print, plus a 55pp 8"x11" English index to the smiths covered, smiths are indexed to both the illustrations and information, an invaluable aid. 4 volumes & Index. GBP340
13.
SHIN NIHONTO NO KANTEI NYUMON by Iida & Hiroi. 5.5"x7.5" flexible binding 390pp with about 700 illustrations, with a chapter on false signatures. A useful book on sword judgement. Temp O/S GBP24
14.
SHIN NIHONTO NO KANTEI NYUMON by Iida. Complete translation by Harry Afu Watson on CD. An essential aid to working with the Japanese text book, (see #13 above). Not returnable. GBP11
15.
KANZAN SHINTO OSHIGATA DICTIONARY by Sato Kanzan, 9"x11.5" card covers. 401pp of oshigata showing the nakago, monouchi & kissaki of 729 shinto & shin-shinto blades from over 400 smiths plus 101pp in English comprising of an introduction, 68pp index in romaji & kanji (68pp), alphabetical English index (3pp) & glossary etc. The oshigata were made by Dr Sato and are taken from Kanzan Oshigata Shinto Jiten. The smiths illustrated are in general the less famous ones that are more likely to be encountered in the west making this a very useful book. GBP75
16.
NIHON NO BIJUTSU #431 Swords From the Fujisawa Collection, by Hiroi, 9" x7.5" paper covers, 106pp of which are plates illustrating blades and mountings donated to the NBTHK by Fujisawa Otoyasu. GBP18
17.
GENDAI NIHONTO NO SEIKA (Catalogue of the 1993 Shinsaku-to Exhibition). 14.25"x10.25" soft covers, 59pp illustrating 28 fine modern blades by photographs, the work 26 of the best modern swordsmiths including Sumitani Masamine and Amata Akitsugu, together with 34pp photocopied pages in English containing the biographies of each smith. GBP12
18.
DAI TOKEN ICHI 2003 7"x10" paper covers. Catalogue of the sword show held in Tokyo, 141pp illustrating 100 blades, 28 tsuba, 52 kogai & kozuka including many futokoromono sets, sword mountings, 6 guns and 6 armours that were the best pieces offered by the dealers exhibiting. All illustrations are in colour except blades. GBP22
19.
ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE OF THE TOKYO NATIONAL MUSEUM SWORD MOUNTINGS 7.5"x10.5", 245pp of which 181 are plates ( 8 in colour) illustrating 321 sword mountings from the Heian to the late Edo period, 172 tsuba from these mountings are also shown. There is a 53pp comprehensive Japanese index and brief 14pp English index to the plates. GBP57
20.
EDO NO TOKEN KOSHIRAE by Ide. 8"x6.5",99pp of which 78pp are colour plates illustrating fine sword mountings of the Edo period plus 13 kabuto. GBP36
21.
EDO NO TANTO KOSHIRAE by Ide. 8"x6.5", 99pp of which 69pp are colour plates illustrating 127 fine aikuchi and tanto mountings of the Edo period. GBP36
22.
TREASURES OF THE TOKUGAWA ART MUSEUM (Vol.3 Swords & Fittings). 8.5"x 10.25" decorated boards, 214pp of which 150 are plates, 61 in colour. illustrates 100 blades, 8 daisho and 16 other mountings together with 41 Goto mitokoromono and 31 tsuba which were handed down in the Tokugawa family. Whilst details of the jihada are fine the hamon are unclear. 9pp English index. This is the same book as #15 on list #12. GBP44
23.
NIHON NO BIJUTSU #332 (Sword Mountings) by Ogasawara, paper covers, mostly illustrations, of which 17pp are in colour, covers sword mountings from the Nara to Edo periods, but mainly koto. GBP18
24.
KUROGANE - SEME TO MAMORI NO BI 2004 Exhibition Catalogue from Nagoya City Museum. 8.25"x 11.75", paper covers, 216pp with 200pp colour plates illustrating 92 blades (some with koshirae) many of them by Owari smiths, the jihada being shown clearly, 39 armours mostly new to publication, many of which were handed down in the Owari Tokugawa family plus 64 helmets, sword mountings, Owari tsuba etc. Temp O/S GBP22
25.
SHIN KATCHU-SHI MEIKAN (Armourers' Signature Book) by Sasama. 6"x8.5" flexible binding, 381pp. A list of armour makers with illustrations of signatures, helmets, armours and tsuba by armour makers mostly from the Edo period. Revised from the 1975 edition with more illustrations, some of which are rather dark. No index but with English readings for the armourers names. GBP48
26.
DAIMYO-KE NO KATCHU Armours of the Daimyo Families, 2007. 7.5"x10" paper covers, 174pp all colour showing armours of various Daimyo families such as Ii, Sanada, Kuroda, Todo & Matsudaira. This book mostly illustrates armours not previously seen and is printed on much better stock than Gakken usually uses. GBP24
27.
NIHON NO KATCHU BUGU JITEN by Sasama. 8"x10.5" slip case. 519pp with photos and drawings on every page. This book covers everything connected with armour in the finest detail; it is one of the best book currently available on the subject. Originally in 3 volumes and is slightly abridged from that edition. GBP100
28.
No Title
29.
ZUSETSU SENGOKU KATCHU SHU Sengoku Period Armour,. 7.25"x10.25" paper cover, 182pp all colour plates illustrating 50 of the personal armours and 20 kabuto of the Sengoku (later 16th century) period daimyo and their accoutrements including banners, jinbaori etc. plus many other helmets and armours. Little English text. GBP24
30.
ZUSETSU SENGOKU KATCHU SHU II Sengoku Period Armour,. 7.25"x10.25" paper cover, 174pp all colour plates illustrating 32 of the personal armours of daimyo and 77 kabuto on 45pp mostly of the Sengoku (later 16th century) period but some earlier, plus their accoutrements including banners, jinbaori etc. plus many other helmets and armours. No English text. GBP24
31.
ZUSETSU SENGOKU BUSHO 118 - Daimyo of the Sengoku Period, 7.25"x10.25" paper covers, 190pp all colour plates showing the portraits, standards, banners, various mon and other details of 118 16th century daimyo, together with personal items like armour, helmets etc.The names and dates of the daimyo in English. GBP23
32.
NIHON NO KATCHU (Catalogue of the Armour Exhibition held in Kyoto National Museum in 1987). 7"x10" soft covers. 200pp, almost all plates, 24 in colour illustrating 174 items mostly armours but including helmets, jinbaori and other pieces. English index. Out of Print GBP30
33.
KATCHU (Armour) by Yamagami & Yamagishi. 4"x 6" paper covers, 152pp of which 96 are plates (half in colour) illustrating armour and helmets from the Heian to the Momoyama period. GBP7
34.
No Title
35.
MILITARY ACCESSORIES OF A DAIMYO HOUSE Tokugawa Art Museum #10, 8.5"x10" soft covers, 162pp of which 120pp are colour plates illustrating armours, jinbaori, banners, matchlocks, saddles and other martial accessories of a daimyo, there is a 12pp English index to the plates. Temp O/S GBP33
36.
No Title
37.
GOTO-KE JUSHICHI-DAI NO TOSOGU (17 Generations of the Goto Family). 9"x 11.75", soft covers, 1994 Sano Museum Catalogue, 146pp of which 88pp are colour plates illustrating 170 pieces of Goto metalwork, mostly kogai, kozuka, menuki plus some tsuba & sword mountings, most pieces are shown enlarged, menuki to 5", kozuka to 7", the reverses of about 70 are shown, plus origami, genealogical information and a 6pp English index to the plates. Out of Print GBP60
38.
No Title
39.
KINKO JITEN by Wakayama & Iida, 4.5"x6.25" flexible covers & slip case, 1615pp. Lists 9800 makers of sword fittings, including a 140pp English-Japanese index to the artists attributing English readings which in many cases are purely speculative, with an 84pp list of art names and tables of nengo. This is a reprint of 'Toso Kinko Jiten'. This is an invaluable reference work. Temp O/S GBP65
40.
KANO NATSUO MEIHIN-SHU by Ikeda & Yoshida. 8.75"x12" slip case. 251pp mostly illustrations (10 in colour) with little text showing 34 tsuba, many kozuka, fuchi-kashira, menuki, most showing both sides plus boxes, paintings, cigar cases and metal plaques by Natsuo. GBP150
41.
KONOIKE-KE HIZO TOKUBETSU TEN SOKEN KINKO GOTO-KE NO MEISAKU O ATSUMETE (Catalogue of the Konoike Collection of Goto sword fittings). 8.25"x 11.5". paper covers, 37pp all colour plates illustrating 20 mitokoro-mono, 29 pairs of menuki and 1 kozuka, all with Edo period origami. There is a brief English text to the plates. GBP22
42.
AKASAKA TSUBA Sano Museum Exhibition Catalogue 1990, 7.75"x10" paper covers, 152pp illustrating 140 Akasaka school tsuba plus 30pp of enlarged signatures. The definitive work on Akasaka tsuba. Out of print. 3 copies left. GBP50
43.
TSUBA by Ogasawara. 4"x6" paper covers,152pp of which 96 are plates illustrat ing 124 fine tsuba (many that are not in other books), 55 in colour. GBP7
44.
KUROKAWA INSTITUTE OF ANCIENT CULTURES COLLECTION - JAPANESE SWORD GUARDS 10.5"x 14.5" slip case, 251pp. Illustrates 33 tsuba in colour and 262 in black & white, many showing both sides, plus pages from a design book for Higo tsuba. The emphasis is on tsuba-ko with 117 tsuba from Higo, there are few kinko pieces shown; with an English introduction by Kashima and a 21pp English index for the b&w illustrations only. Limited edition of 300 copies. GBP280
45.
NARA SANSAKU (The Three Artists of Nara) by Yoneno, 1974. 9"x12" slip case, 648pp of which 271pp are plates (104 in colour) illustrating 404 pieces of sword fittings, mostly tsuba by the famous artists Nara Toshinaga, Tsuchiya Yasuchika and Sugiura Joi. This is a lavishly illustrated book in which the author explains his own theories about the artists which don't always agree with those of other experts. There is an English introduction and captions for the plates. GBP240
46.
TSUBA NO BI (Beautiful Tsuba) by Kashima & others. 6"x8.5" soft covers. 246pp almost all plates (4 in colour) illustrating 313 tsuba full size and 54 small size. Covers tsuba-ko with very little kinko. GBP26
47.
TSUBA NO DESIGN by Shibata. 6"x8.5", 208pp illustrates 180 tsuba (8 in colour),many showing both sides and grouped according to design, covers tsuba-ko and kinko about equally, together with sections on tsuba making & prices. GBP29
48.
WORKS OF HIRATA & SHIMIZU by Ito, 8.5"x12" slip case, 367pp of which 287pp are plates illustrating 318 Higo sword fittings, mostly tsuba and in colour, covering two generations of Hirata Hikozo, five generations of Shimizu Jingo plus coverage of works by Chisokutei and Mizumi Koji, the tsuba are shown both sides and include many pieces not previously illustrated. English text to the plates. GBP325
49.
NISHIGAKI KANSHIRO by Ito, 8.5"x12", 2005, slip case, 46pp of text plus 210pp of plates (105 in colour) illustrating 285 pieces made by the first three generations of the Nishigaki family, about a two-thirds are tsuba, all showing both sides, the rest are fuchi-kashira. Many of the tsuba have not previously been illustrated. particularly the soft metal tsuba. A few of the fourth generation are shown.Brief English index to the plates This is a very useful book as it enables collectors to identify items that previously would not have been thought to be Nishigaki school work. GBP210
50.
ECHIZEN KINAI TSUBA by Tsuruoka, 7.5"x10.5", 196pp, illustrates 139 tsuba, 6 in colour. The authors have reinterpreted the history of this school and suggest that there were 6 generations of 'Ishikawa or ko-Kinai' followed by 7 generations of 'Takahashi Kinai', if true many tsuba now thought to be fake Kinai would seem to be genuine. GBP95
51.
TSUBA TOSO KINKO Rokusho #34, Rokusho #34, 2007, 9"x11.5" paper covers, 83pp almost all of which are colour plates illus-trating 19th century kinko tsuba and small fittings from the Kiyomizu Sannenzaka Museum, many of the pieces are shown magnified. The plates are superb and show great detail, there is a detailed English description for each plate. This is a companion volume to #54 on the Japanese page. GBP34
52.
KUROGANE NO HANA - HIGO TSUBA-SHU by Miki, 8.5"x12" slip case, 176pp illustrating 206 Higo tsuba, some showing both sides. This book covers the Hayashi, Kamiyoshi, Nishigaki, Shimizu and Tsuboi schools, there is particularly valuable coverage of the last group showing 58 tsuba that are copies of those by other Higo schools. The illustrations are rather pale but show good detail. There are tsuba that do not appear in other books.Now out of print. Out of Print GBP105
53.
DRAWINGS WITH TAGANE CHISELS 8.25"x11.75". 1997, paper covers, 96pp almost all colour plates illustrating 25 tsuba, 26 kozuka, 12 menuki, 17 futatokoromono & mitokoromono, Most are shown both sides, there are also fuchi-kashira, pages from a design book and related metalwork and paintings. Catalogue of an Osaka exhibition. Introduction in English only. Out of Print GBP27
54.
KINKO TSUBA MEIHIN-SHU 9"x11.5" paper covers, Rokusho #28, 2005, 96pp of which 85pp are colour plates illustrating 19th century kinko tsuba from the Kiyomizu Sannenzaka Museum, the tsuba are shown magnified to 4-5" and sometimes to full page. The plates are superb and show great detail, the artists names are in English. GBP33
55.
SENGOKU BUSHO NO YOSOI Sano Museum Exhibition Catalogue, 2006, 7.75"x11.75" paper covers, 119pp mostly colour plates. Illustrates small fittings by the first 3 Goto masters on 41pp the images magnified, 31 (mostly) kawari kabuto and 5 armours on 41pp plus 5 blades, koshirae and menpo, all the items illustrated belonged to famous 16th century Daimyo, English text to the plates. GBP26
56.
TOSOGU MACHIBORI MEIHIN SHUSEI by Fukushi Shigeo, 10.5 "x15", cloth covered slipcase,2005, 427pp of which 248pp are colour plates including ten full length fold-out plates of fine koshirae, this is the companion volume to the author's earlier book on the Goto family and covers the machi-bori (street carvers) kinko schools.The remainder of the book gives genealogies,signatures and other information on the various schools. The book does not cover the tsuba-ko. All the pieces shown are the best work of the artists and are from the Tokyo National Museum collection and are illustrated in fine detail. There is English text to the plates and a 10pp English index. This is a fabulous book which is hard to find in the west. GBP350
