i am suprised as to how much money people are prepared  to pay for japanese swords on ebay  i have collected these swords for a very very long time and here is some advice to take on board. from 1600ad to the present there have been in japan thousands and thousands of sword smiths. some good some bad some terrible and some really superb. the age of a blade does not contribute in any way to its value. that is down to the smith. the world record is about   three quarters of a million and the blade was not that old. japanese sword smiths were the worlds most proficient copiers of other smiths signatures there were just a very very few that relied on their own signature. up to now most japanese swords with a famous signature  have turned out to be forgeries. even though the blades were very skillfully made. i have always thought it strange that sellers on ebay who profess to have great knowledge of japanese swords take a gamble on ebay. the market for quality pre showa blades in japan is red hot. if the blade is that good they will have it appraised the cost is one hundred pounds. no cost at all  if the sword will sell for thousands. a cheaper way is christies bonhams sotherbys or wallis and wallis sale rooms their  japanese experts will appraise the blade  for a small charge and give an estimate of the blades worth. the best advice i can give is join the tok:en  society and if paying a lot of money on ebay for a japanese sword discribed as being by a rare and famous smith ask that if the sword  turns out to be a forgery you can send the sword back for a full refund. and i would bet now that you will be stuck with it. as an example a good  blade made by an average smith in good polish will, with commission set you back the thick end of two thousand pounds. for every good sword out there there are a hundred that look dead good but under the dressing up are rubbish. very few people if anyone except mebbe superman with exray vision can tell whether or not a blade will polish. its pot luck. . under that very little bit of pitting that really does not make much differance is a carbon pit that makes the blade scrap metal. and finally ask yourself this, if the sword is that good and the seller knows his stuff why is he taki ng a gamble on ebay.