Signed WWII Japanese Army Officer Shin Gunto Sword by an Army Approved Swordsmith

The shin gunto sword has an overall length in the scabbard of approximately 39 inches, with a blade length of approximately 26 inches. The blade exhibits some signs of age, with scattered spots and scratches, but it is generally clean, while also displaying a visible and distinct temper line. The tang has a single mounting hole and it bears a quality control mark and it is is signed “Made by Kataoka Kunihiro of Seki”. Kunihiro’s legal name was “Kataoka Itoshi” and he entered the Seki Guild Log on November 13, 1941. He was born on April 1st 1895, and he worked as rikugun-jumei-tōshō (an Army approved swordsmith). In a published evaluation of Japanese swordsmiths in 1942 he was given the ranking of “Ryōkō no retsu”, or “Skilled artisan”. He passed away on  December 2nd, 1965. The grip is covered in light sharkskin, and it is tightly wrapped in the traditional manner with brown fabric which shows some wear and fraying from handling. Beneath the fabric on each side of the grip are the standard military menuki of three cherry blossoms, with a toned gilt finish. The tsuba guard is the solid style with four raised cherry blossoms in relief. The steel scabbard retains its olive brown paint and shows some shallow indentations. Overall the sword is in very condition. We photographed the sword with the retaining peg removed – we will replace it when we ship it.