The Lanes Armoury, As Well As Being Referred To As Britain’s Favourite Antique Store, After Being Family Traders For Four Generations Over 100 Years, We Are Europe’s Leading Original Samurai Sword Specialists

We are the leading and pre-eminent original samurai sword specialists in the whole of Europe, in fact we know of no other specialists outside of Japan, and likely within it, that stock anywhere near the quantity of our selection. Constantly striving to achieve the very best for all our clients from around the world, our solution demanded a holistic approach and a strategic vision of what can be achieved. A solution that has effectively taken over 100 years in the making, and thus in order to be improved upon, it is evolving, constantly. However, never forgetting our old fashioned values of a personal, one to one service, dedicated for the benefit of our customers.

We even had the enormous privilege, to own and sell, although, sadly, only very briefly, thanks to the kind assistance of the most highly esteemed Japanese sword expert in England, Victor Harris, an incredibly rare and unique sword, an original, Edo period, traditionally hand made representation copy of the most famous Japanese sword in world history, the Japanese National Treasure, Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi (草薙の剣). It is a legendary Japanese sword and one of three Imperial Regalia of Japan. It was originally called Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi (天叢雲剣, "Heavenly Sword of Gathering Clouds"), but its name was later changed to the more popular Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi ("Grass-Cutting Sword"). In folklore, the sword represents the virtue of valour. Victor stated it was the only example he had ever seen, possibly an official Imperial commission, to create a faithful, identical copy of the most treasured sword ever made in Japan’s history. A sword used in the coronation of the Emperor, yet even the emperor is not permitted to see it, only to place his hand upon it under a ceremonial silk cloth.
Our one time advisor, Victor Harris, was Curator, Assistant Keeper and then Keeper (1998-2003) of the Department of Japanese Antiquities, at the British Museum. Studied 1968-71 under Sato Kenzan, Tokyo National Museum and Society for the Preservation of Japanese Swords. We fondly remember many brainstorming sessions on our Japanese swords with Victor and our late colleague, Chris Fox, here in our store .

After well over 50 years personal experience as a professional dealer by Mark, since 1971, and David’s over 40 years, we are now recognised as Europe’s leading samurai sword specialists, with hundreds of swords to view and buy online 24/7, or, within our store, on a personal visit, 6 days a week. In fact we know of no better and varied original samurai sword selection for sale under one roof outside of Japan, or probably, even within it. Hundreds of original pieces up to 800 years old. Whether we are selling to our clients representing museums around the globe, the world’s leading collectors, or simply a first time buyer, we offer our advice and guidance in order to assist the next custodian of a fine historical Japanese sword, to make the very best and entirely holistic choice combination, of a sword and it’s fittings.

But that of course is just one small part of the story and history of The Lanes Armoury, and the Hawkins brothers, as the world famous arms armour, militaria & book merchants

Both of the partners of the company have spent literally all of their lives surrounded by objects of history, trained, almost since birth in the arts, antiques and militaria. Supervised and mentored, first by their grandfathers, then their father, who left the RAF sometime after the war, to become one of the leading antique exporters and dealers in the entire world. Selling, around the globe, through our network of numerous shops, warehouses, and antique export companies, in today’s equivalent, hundreds of millions of pounds of our antiques and works of art.

Both Mark and David were incredibly fortunate to be mentored by some of the world’s leading experts within their fields of antiques and militaria. For example, just to mention two of Mark’s diverse mentors, one was Edward ‘Ted’ Dale, who was one of Britains most highly respected and leading experts on antiques, he was chief auctioneer and managing director in the 1960’s and 70’s of Bonham’s Auctioneers of London, now one of the worlds highest ranked auction companies, and at the other end of the spectrum, there was Bill ‘Yorkie’ Cole, the company’s ‘keeper of horse’, who revelled in the title of the company’s ‘head stable boy’, right up until his 90’s, in fact he refused to retire, he simply ‘faded away’. He controlled our stables and dozens of horse drawn vehicles up to the 1970’s. He was a true Brighton character, whose experiences in the antique trade went way back to WW1, and, amongst other skills, he taught young Mark, as a teenager in the 1960’s, to drive a horse drawn pantechnicon with ‘Dolly’, Britain’s last surviving English dray horse that was trained for night driving in the ‘blackout’ during the blitz. See a photo of the company pantechnicon and 'Dolly' in the gallery

Mark has been a director and partner in the family businesses since 1971, specialising in elements of the family business that varied from the acquisition and export of vintage cars, mostly Rolls Royces, Bentleys, Aston Martins and Lagondas, to America, to the complete restoration and furnishing of a historical Sussex Georgian country Manor House for his late mother from the ground up, but long before that he was handling and buying swords and flintlocks since he was just seven years old, obviously in a very limited way though, naturally.

David jnr, Mark’s younger brother, also started collecting militaria when he was seven, in fact he became the youngest firearms dealer licence holder in the country, and it was he that convinced Mark that concentrating on militaria and rare books was the future for our world within the antique trade, and as you will by now guess, history, antiques, books and militaria are simply in their blood.

Thus, around 40 years ago, they decided to sell their export business and concentrate where their true hearts lie, in the world of military history and its artefacts, from antiquity to the 20th century. From fine and rare books and first editions, to antiquities and the greatest historical and beautiful samurai swords to be found. One photo in the gallery was one of the rarest books we have ever had, some years ago, a Great Gatsby Ist edition they can now command up to $360,000

One photo in the gallery is of Mark, some few years ago with his then new lockdown companion at the farm, ‘Cody’, named after Buffalo Bill naturally. Cody is now somewhat bigger! .Another photo is of two of our ten company trucks photographed just after their delivery from the signwriters. As you can see we always enjoyed a very old fashioned British tradition of having our vehicles fully liveried, hand sign written and artistically painted by our local and very talented artisans. Vehicles that ranged from our many horse drawn vehicles, to our 1930’s Bedford generator lorry that doubled up during WW2 as a mobile searchlight for the local anti-aircraft artillery installations, and then to our more modern fleet from the 1950’s to the 1980’s. The green liveried Leyland truck in the photograph was hand painted with a massive representation of the scene of the chariot race from Chuck Heston’s movie spectacular Ben Hur, and on the other side a huge copy of Lady Butler’s Charge of the Heavy Brigade. Each painting took over three months to complete. When we called Chuck in America to show him the completed livery, painted in his honour, he was delighted and very impressed and promised to visit us again to see it personally in all its glory, sadly his filming schedules for his 1970’s blockbuster disaster movies such as ‘Earthquake’ prevented it. Chuck was recommended to us years before by one of his co-stars in Solyent Green, one of Hollywood’s true greats, {alongside Chuck} Edward G. Robinson, who used to buy, undervalued {then}, impressionist paintings from David snr in the 1960’s.  read more

Code: 24364

A Superb & Rare Historical French Cuirassier's Flintlock Pistol Year XIII Pattern. Made and Issued to the Cuirassiers Before Napoleon's 100 Days War. And Used At the Battles of Quatre Bras and Waterloo

Fine walnut stock, steel barrel and lock, and brass furniture. Good sound action. The lock bears the arsenal mark of Manu. Roy. de St Etienne, the stock is stamped 1815, as is the barrel that also bears the 'An XIII' stamp. Other clear inspector's marks throughout, plus the H.MARTIN collection stamp in the stock on the rear side. After research we concluded it was originally from a collection of souvenirs collected by an officer of the 44th East Essex, bearing his name, H. Martin struck upon the stock. Previously it was believed to be possessed from the battle by a W. Martin, but there was no W.Martin in the 44th, but an officer, H. Martin, and this matches his stamp on the stock. H.Martin wrote to his mother that he had a run in with the French cuirassiers and witnessed them being eviscerated.

A few of Mr Martins original Waterloo effects, including his Waterloo medal, have appeared upon the market relatively recently

Local South of England man, Henry Martin was an officer with the 2nd Battalion 44th Regiment of Foot (East Essex) and seems to have served in both the Peninsula and Waterloo campaigns. Henry was keen to let his family know he was in good shape after the Battle of Waterloo and put them in the picture as to his role in events, so he penned a quick letter to his father dated 29th June 1815. His father in turn copied the letter out for Henry’s brothers at Oxford to see his account in his own words.

In his letter Henry explained his Division had been bought up to support the Prussians on the 16th June {see photo of a contemporary copy of his letter in our gallery}. ‘We were fighting from about 4 o Clock till dark, during which time we were repeatedly charged by french Quirassiers, but who were repeatedly repulsed with great loss.’ This might be a description of the battle of Quatre Bras as the 2nd Btn of the 44th were badly knocked about at that encounter with the French on the 16th.

As for the Battle of Waterloo itself on the 18th Henry summarised events very succinctly saying ‘the french attack’d us at ten o Clock. The fight continued the whole day & about 7 at night were gaining a little ground on the right, the Prussians (who were expected before) made their appearance, which decided the day. The French ran in great confusion, & our cavalry & the Prussians made terrible havock among them.’ Henry was one of the few officers in his regiment to survive both battles unscathed. He apologised for his writing explaining he was writing the letter on top of his cap and that ‘there are four or five officers waiting around me for the Pen, which bad as it is, I believe is the only one amongst us.’

Readers of Bernard Cornwell’s Sharpe novels will recall that some of the South Essex Regiment’s exploits in his books are in part based on the 2/44th’s actions around this time.

This flintlock pistol was made at the French Royal Arsenal at Mauberg {formerly the Imperial Arsenal} in 1815, during the period between Napoleon's defeat in 1814 and exile to Elba, and his return in 1815. Thus this pistol was made just between January 1st, to early March 1815, whereupon it was issued to the cuirassiers, that then verey soon transferred their loyalty back to their old emperor, Napoleon upon his return from exile in Elba. It was used by the cuirassiers in the 100 Days War, culminating in Napoleon's final defeat at Quatre Bras and Waterloo by the Duke of Wellington, and this pistol being taken as war booty.

Used as a regimental issue sidearm, by and the very best French Napoleonic frontline cavalry, the carabineers, cuirassiers, chasseurs, dragoons and lancers, serving in Napoleon Bonaparte's army during the Napoleonic Wars. This is the pattern called the AN 13 {year 13} which represents the 13th year of French Ist Republic of 1792. The French Republican Calendar or French Revolutionary Calendar was a calendar proposed during the French Revolution, and used by the French government for about 12 years from late 1793. This is the pattern of pistol that would have first seen service in the Elite Imperial Guard Cuirassiers of Napoleon's great heavy cavalry regiments. The Cuirassiers Heavy Cavalry Regiments used the largest men in France, recruited to serve in the greatest and noblest cavalry France has ever had. They fought with distinction at their last great conflict at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, and most of the Cuirassiers pistols now in England very likely came from that field of conflict, after the battle, as trophies of war. This pistol may well have been taken from a vanquished Cuirassier by Mr Martin as his pistol was drawn for combat on the field of battle. One can imagine this pistol lying freely, or, maybe, even still clasped in his cold desperate hand, or even under his fallen steed, at the field of conflict at Waterloo. Every warrior that has ever entered service for his country sought trophies. The Mycenae from a fallen Trojan, the Roman from a fallen Gaul, the GI from a fallen Japanese, the tradition stretches back thousands of years, and will continue as long as man serves his country in battle. In the 1st century AD the Roman Poet Decimus Iunius Iuvenalis Juvenal
wrote; "Man thirsts more for glory than virtue. The armour of an enemy, his broken helmet, the flag ripped from a conquered trireme, are treasures valued beyond all human riches. It is to obtain these tokens of glory that Generals, be they Roman, Greek or barbarian, brave a thousand perils
and endure a thousand exertions". A truly super Napoleonic pistol. The cuirassiers were the greatest of all France's cavalry, allowing only the strongest men of over 6 feet in height into it's ranks. The French Cuirassiers were at their very peak in 1815, and never again regained the wonder and glory that they truly deserved at that time. To face a regiment of, say, 600 charging steeds bearing down upon you mounted with armoured giants, brandishing the mightiest of swords that could pierce the strongest breast armour, much have been, quite simply, terrifying. Made in the period that Napoleon was Emperor and ruling most of Europe, it was used through the Royal restoration period, when Napoleon was imprisoned at Elba, and then during the War of the 100 days, culminating at Waterloo .
All Napoleon's heavy Cavalry Regiments fought at Waterloo, there were no reserve regiments, and all the Cuirassiers, without exception fought with their extraordinary resolve, bravery and determination. The Hundred Days started after Napoleon, separated from his wife and son, who had come under Austrian control, was cut off from the allowance guaranteed to him by the Treaty of Fontainebleau, and aware of rumours he was about to be banished to a remote island in the Atlantic Ocean, Napoleon escaped from Elba on 26 February 1815. He landed at Golfe-Juan on the French mainland, two days later. The French 5th Regiment was sent to intercept him and made contact just south of Grenoble on 7 March 1815. Napoleon approached the regiment alone, dismounted his horse and, when he was within gunshot range, shouted, "Here I am. Kill your
Emperor, if you wish." The soldiers responded with, "Vive L'Empereur!" and marched with Napoleon to Paris; Louis XVIII fled. On 13 March, the powers at the Congress of Vienna declared Napoleon an outlaw and four days later Great Britain, the Netherlands, Russia, Austria and Prussia bound themselves to put 150,000 men into the field to end his rule. Napoleon arrived in Paris on 20 March and governed for a period now called the Hundred Days. By the start of
June the armed forces available to him had reached 200,000 and he decided to go on the offensive to attempt to drive a wedge between the oncoming British and Prussian armies. The French Army of the North crossed the frontier into the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, in modern-day Belgium. Napoleon's forces fought the allies, led by Wellington and Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, at the Battle of Waterloo on 18 June 1815. Wellington's army withstood repeated attacks by the French and drove them from the field while the Prussians arrived in force and broke through Napoleon's right flank. The French army left the battlefield in disorder, which allowed Coalition forces to enter France and restore Louis XVIII to the French throne. Off the port of Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, after consideration of an escape to the United States, Napoleon formally demanded political asylum from the British Captain Frederick Maitland on HMS Bellerophon on 15 July 1815. The pistol is in very nice condition overall.

As with all our antique guns no license is required as they are all unrestricted antique collectables  read more

Code: 25366

A Superb, Gendaito, Japanese Traditionally Hand Made Officer's Katana By A Famous Gendaito Sword Maker, & Signed Ichihara Ichiryushi Nagamitsu, With His Kakihan, and Silver Clan Kamon Of the Fujii

In excellent condition overall, the signed blade bearing the smiths signature with his personal kakihan at the bottom of his name. A kakihan is a rarely seen feature that is a personal symbol for the smith, that can either take the form of a chisel engraved kanji on the nakago or a seal stamp, at the base of the tang, beneath the signature, this is a rare and exclusive personal identification mark. One can see it clearly in the photo of the signature on the blade in the gallery, it is the last kanji at the bottom beneath his name. Kakihan can also be found used by tsuba makers. The blade shows a very fine hamon and is in original superb polish, and all the traditional WW2 sword fittings are very good plus. Metal saya covered in combat leather. The tsuka bears a very good silver kanji clan kamon crest, of the Fujii family of traditional samurai.

Nagamitsu is one of the most famous names in the history of Japanese swords. There have been various swordsmiths named Nagamitsu who worked from the mid 1200’s through the 1940’s. The most famous of them worked in Bizen, although swordsmiths by this name are recorded as having worked in Satsuma, Yamato, Yamashiro and other locations.

Ichihara Ichiryushi Nagamitsu worked during the Showa Era in the 1930’s and 1940’s. He was the one of the famous gendaito smiths who was often thought to be the so-called Director of Okayama Prison, and who men under his control to make fine gendaito known as Emura swords. However, some now believe this is not the case.

It has been established that Nagamitsu was a participant in the first Army Shinsakuto Exhibition held in 1944, in which he entered under the name of Ichihara Nagamitsu. Nagamitsu resided in Okayama and is mentioned in the Tosho Zensho by Shimizu which lists him as a Rikugun Jumei Tosho (Army approved swordsmith) and as a member of the Rikugun Gunto Gijutsu Tenrankai. He was awarded the Kaicho-sho prize at a sword competition held by Riku-gun Gunto Sho-rei Kai before the war.

Some Nagamitsu blades will have a small, faint “saka” stamp on the nakago or nakago-mune. This indicates a blade made for the Osaka Rikugun Zoheisho (Osaka Army Arsenal). Several smiths including Ichihara Nagamitsu, Gassan Sadakatsu, Kawano Sadashige and Kosaka Masayoshi made blades for the Osaka Rikugun Zoheisho.

Swordsman Saruta Mitsuhiro, head of the Musashi Dojo Ryuseika of Osaka, used a blade made by Ishiryushi Nagamitsu to perform kabutowari (helmet cutting). The blade successfully cut several centimeters into the iron plate helmet without sustaining significant damage, thus demonstrating the excellent quality and resilience of Nagamitsu’s swords.
This hand forged katana is a finest quality Gendaito, made by a Kaicho-sho prize winning swordsmith  read more

Code: 25370

Original Ancient Roman ‘Cross-bow” Fibula Bronze Toga Pin Military Issue, Fine Piece For Higher Ranking Figures in the Legion, Such As a Centurion or Tribune

Bow Fibula with a folded or rolled sleeve hinge, c. Early Imperial - Beginning of 2nd Century. We acquired a very small collection of roman toga pins, from super, small collection of original, historical, Imperial Roman and Crusader's artefacts
Shaped in the form of a roman military crossbow fibula, in bronze.
It became the most popular form of closure for Roman fibulae, and is characteristic of the bow brooches from the early imperial times to the beginning of the 2nd century. Outside the Roman Empire and after that time, this type of hinge was seldom used. The sleeve hinge consists of a small sleeve at the top of the head which is forged from a square sheet metal plate and then rolled up. In a center-cut slot, the spiked needle is inserted and held by a shaft (usually iron) passing through the whole sleeve. At the ends of each of the Aucissa fibulae and their early successors were buttons holding the hinge axis; later, the hinge axis was clamped in the sleeve and needed no buttons. The needle always carries a thorn-like projection on its perforated oval plate, which beats against the head of the fibula and, by virtue of this resistance, causes the suspension to spring forth. The sleeve hinge is used exclusively in bow fibulae. The needle is primarily rectilinear, but bends hand in hand with the flattening of the bow to the outside to continue to leave enough space between the bracket and needle. The sleeve hinge is considered a typical Roman construction. The paludamentum was usually worn over one shoulder and fastened with a fibula (ancient version of a safety pin). Arguments abound over what shoulder was exposed, but it seems fairly clear that the garment was fastened loosely enough to move around, The paludamentum was a cloak that was specifically associated with warfare. A general donned one for the ceremonial procession leading an army out of the sacred precinct of the city of Rome and was required to remove it before returning to the city…a sign that he was no longer a general, but a common citizen. The paludamentum or sagum purpura (purple cloak) was the iconic red cloak worn by a Roman general (Legatus) and his staff officers. Originally, it’s distinctive red/purple color clearly delineated between these officers and the rest of the army, which sported the sagum gregale (cloak of the flock). Although the sagum gregale, worn by the rank and file, started out the color of the flock (i.e. undyed wool), it seems likely to have transitioned to a coarser version of the sagum purpura by the imperial period (27BCE – 476CE). Outfitting the entire army in red garments would have been a mark of the great wealth of Rome – well, that and the fact that the Romans controlled the source of purple dye by then.The pin is now frozen through two millennia in a fixed position. Fibula 47mm x 22mm [not incuding pin] 68mm long x 22mm including the pin extended  read more

Code: 23985

A Superb, Original, 15th Century Tanged Lance Head From the Battle Of Agincourt of 1415 . Acquired in the 1820's at a ‘Grand Tour’ Battle Site

We were most delighted to have acquired a stunning collection of ancient bronze age weaponry, Medieval weaponry and a few other artefacts, including this stunning, and rare, steel pole-arm. Items such as this were oft acquired in the 18th century by touring famous battle sites in Northern France, Italy and the Ottoman Empire on their 1820’s Grand Tour. Originally placed on display in the family 'cabinet of curiosities', within their family estate country home upon their return to Britain. A popular pastime in the 18th and 19th century, comprised of English ladies and gentlemen traveling for many months, or even years, througout classical Europe and the Middle East, acquiring antiquities and antiques from ancient battle sites, such as the French sites at Agincourt, Crecy and Poitiers, for their private collections at home. One such family’s descendants have been allowing us to purchase such wonderful pieces from their family collection for around the past 30 years. These pole-arms were used at Agincourt by both English and French knights on horseback as a lance, and by the English and French men-at-arms on foot as a pole-arm or pike. However the French men at arms shortened their original long woodened hafts further which gave them a huge disadvantage in the battle's melee against the longer reach of the English. In superb condition for age, and a very fine quality piece, much superior than a regular lance or spearhead of the time. Armour-protected knights charged on horseback wielding lances ten to eleven feet long (cut down to as short as five feet by both the French and English at the Battle of Agincourt). The age ended with the rise of the bowmen in the fourteenth century. While the devastating volleys of English longbow men had initiated the change at Crecy on August 26, 1346, it was massed bodies of pikemen that really thwarted cavalry charges, as they did at the Battle of Pavia in 1525. Large quantities of lances would also have been used at Agincourt by men-at-arms. The small mounted French force at the battle tasked with driving off the English archers would have been equipped with this weapon. The vast majority of the French men-at-arms, and all of the English, were dismounted but still used lances at Agincourt. The English had an advantage over the French at the battle however, because the latter had decided to shorten their lances to give them greater control over their weapons prior to the battle. This proved to be a mistake during the melee as the longer English lances meant that they had a greater reach and were able to push over the French. One account of the lance used at Agincourt involved an assault on King Henry himself." under the banner of the Lord of Croy, eighteen gentlemen banded themselves together of their own choice, and swore that when the two parties should come to meet they would strive with all their might to get so near the King of England that they would beat down the crown from his head, or they would die, as they did; but before this they got so near the said King that one of them with the lance which he held struck him such a blow on his helmet that he knocked off one of the ornaments of his crown. But not long afterwards it only remained that the eighteen gentlemen were all dead and cut to pieces; which was a great pity; for if every one of the French had been willing thus to exert himself, it is to be believed that their affairs would have gone better on this day. And the leaders of these gentlemen were Louvelet de Massinguehem and Garnot de Bornouille" King Henry V of England led his troops into battle and participated in hand-to-hand fighting. The French king of the time, Charles VI, did not command the French army himself, as he suffered from severe psychotic illnesses with moderate mental incapacitation. Instead, the French were commanded by Constable Charles d'Albret and various prominent French noblemen of the Armagnac party.

This battle is notable for the use of the English longbow in very large numbers, with the English and Welsh archers forming up to 80 percent of Henry's army. The decimation of the French cavalry at their hands is regarded as an indicator of the decline of cavalry and the beginning of the dominance of ranged weapons on the battlefield.

Agincourt is one of England's most celebrated victories. The battle is the centrepiece of the play Henry V by Shakespeare. Juliet Barker in her book Agincourt: The King, the Campaign, the Battle ( published in 2005) argues the English and Welsh were outnumbered "at least four to one and possibly as much as six to one". She suggests figures of about 6,000 for the English and 36,000 for the French, based on the Gesta Henrici's figures of 5,000 archers and 900 men-at-arms for the English, and Jean de Wavrin's statement "that the French were six times more numerous than the English". The 2009 Encyclop?dia Britannica uses the figures of about 6,000 for the English and 20,000 to 30,000 for the French. Overall 20.5 inches long in very sound and nice condition for age. There are very few such surviving lances from this era, and just a few are part of the Royal Collection. As with all our items it comes complete with our certificate of authenticity. Almost every iron weapon that has survived today from this era is now in a russeted condition, however this one, is relatively lightly russeted. Usually only the swords of kings, that have been preserved in national or Royal collections are today still in a reasonable state and condition. The wooden hafts simply never survive from being lost in the ground for so many centuries  read more

Code: 23022

An Eastern Roman Empire Battle War Axe 4th - 10th Cent. A.D.

This is a typical axe for the Eastern Roman Empire legionary and warrior. From the time of Emperor Constantine 'The Great' and used to The beginning of Byzantium period.

The Battle of Cibalae was fought in 316 between the two Roman emperors Constantine I (r. 306–337) and Licinius (r. 308–324). The site of the battle, near the town of Cibalae (now Vinkovci, Croatia) in the Roman province of Pannonia Secunda, was approximately 350 kilometers within the territory of Licinius. Constantine won a resounding victory, despite being outnumbered.
The opposing armies met on the plain between the rivers Sava and Drava near the town of Cibalae (Vinkovci). The battle lasted all day. The battle opened with Constantine's forces arrayed in a defile adjacent to mountain slopes. The army of Licinius was stationed on lower ground nearer the town of Cibalae, Licinius took care to secure his flanks. As the infantry of Constantine needed to move forward through broken ground, the cavalry was thrown out ahead, to act as a screen. Constantine moved his formation down on to the more open ground and advanced against the awaiting Licinians. Following a period of skirmishing and intense missile fire at a distance, the opposing main bodies of infantry met in close combat and fierce hand-to-hand fighting ensued. This battle of attrition was ended, late in the day, when Constantine personally led a cavalry charge from the right wing of his army. The charge was decisive, Licinius' ranks were broken. As many as 20,000 of Licinius' troops were killed in the hard-fought battle. The surviving cavalry of the defeated army accompanied Licinius when he fled the field under the cover of darkness
It is a matter of debate when the Roman Empire officially ended and transformed into the Byzantine Empire. Most scholars accept that it did not happen at one time, but that it was a slow process; thus, late Roman history overlaps with early Byzantine history. Constantine I (the Great) is usually held to be the founder of the Byzantine Empire. He was responsible for several major changes that would help create a Byzantine culture distinct from the Roman past.

As emperor, Constantine enacted many administrative, financial, social, and military reforms to strengthen the empire. The government was restructured and civil and military authority separated. A new gold coin, the solidus, was introduced to combat inflation. It would become the standard for Byzantine and European currencies for more than a thousand years. As the first Roman emperor to claim conversion to Christianity, Constantine played an influential role in the development of Christianity as the religion of the empire. In military matters, the Roman army was reorganised to consist of mobile field units and garrison soldiers capable of countering internal threats and barbarian invasions. Constantine pursued successful campaigns against the tribes on the Roman frontiers the Franks, the Alamanni, the Goths, and the Sarmatians, and even resettled territories abandoned by his predecessors during the turmoil of the previous century.

The age of Constantine marked a distinct epoch in the history of the Roman Empire. He built a new imperial residence at Byzantium and renamed the city Constantinople after himself (the laudatory epithet of New Rome came later, and was never an official title). It would later become the capital of the empire for over one thousand years; for this reason the later Eastern Empire would come to be known as the Byzantine Empire. His more immediate political legacy was that, in leaving the empire to his sons, he replaced Diocletian’s tetrarchy (government where power is divided among four individuals) with the principle of dynastic succession. His reputation flourished during the lifetime of his children, and for centuries after his reign. The medieval church upheld him as a paragon of virtue, while secular rulers invoked him as a prototype, a point of reference, and the symbol of imperial legitimacy and identity. The Varangian Guard was an elite unit of the Byzantine Army, whose members served as personal bodyguards to the Byzantine Emperors. The Varangian Guard was known for being primarily composed of recruits from northern Europe, including Norsemen from Scandinavia and Anglo-Saxons from England. The recruitment of distant foreigners from outside Byzantium to serve as the emperor's personal guard was pursued as a deliberate policy, as they lacked local political loyalties and could be counted upon to suppress revolts by disloyal Byzantine factions. This axes form and evolution; A somewhat similar correspondent to the type 1 of the classification made by the Kirpichnikov for the early Russian axes. Particularly, it seems akin to the specimens of Goroditsche and Opanowitschi, dated in the turn of 10th - 11th centuries however, its shape is slightly different, and considering the strong influence of the Roman Armies on the Russian ones in 11th century.
The general Nikephoros Ouranos remembers in his Taktika (56, 4) that small axes were used at the waist of the selected archers of infantry : "You must select proficient archers - the so called psiloi - four thousand. These men must have fifty arrows each in their quivers, two bows, small shields and extra bowstrings. Let them also have swords at the waist, or axes, or slings in their belts".

The axe was inserted in its wooden shaft and fixed to it by means of dilatation of the wood, dampened by water. The Byzantine Empire is the great Greek-language Christian empire that emerged after 395AD from the eastern part of the Roman Empire, Thanks to efficient government and clever diplomacy that divided its many enemies, the empire survived. Much diminished after 1204 AD when it was sacked by Christian Crusaders from the west en route to liberate Jerusalem, it finally fell to the Turks in 1453--indeed its fall is often used to date the end of the Middle Ages. Its capital was Constantinople, built on the site of the Greek colony of Byzantium and which is now known as Istanbul). The center of Orthodox Christianity, it is famous as well for its art and culture. The inhabitants of the empire referred to themselves as 'Romans' and considered themselves as such, the term 'Byzantine' not being used to describe the empire and its peoples until the seventeenth century, but after the seventh century the language of empire changed from Latin to Greek. Almost every iron weapon that has survived today from this era is now in a fully russetted condition, as is this one, because only the swords of kings, that have been preserved in national or Royal collections are today still in a good state and condition.  read more

Code: 22671

A Most Fine and Rare Victorian British General's Mamaluke With a Captured Battle Trophy, or Presentation, Spectacular, Indian, Damascus Steel Blade, With Islamic Gold Cartouche Seal Engraved and Inlaid With Gold, 'Mohammed, Blessings Be Upon Him'

Traditional British Mamaluke pattern hilt in gilt bronze, with ivory grips and gilt rossettes, original gilt bullion sword knot. The central crest between the quillon is a General's crossed baton and sabre symbol. The scabbard is formed gilt brass, of the usual generals pattern, but made extra wide than is usual to bespoke fit the fine wide blade.
The kind of fantastic sword & highest quality wootz water pattern Damascus blade that would have been used by a British General such General Havelock, General Nicholson of Delhi, or General Sir James Outram, from the the Crimean War or the Indian Mutiny period.

The sword would have normally been fitted with a standard etched blade, but a few, usually very notable generals of fame and status, might have a presentation or captured blade such as this fitted for their mamaluke. The cartouche reads approx, 'Mohammed, Blessings Be Upon Him'

Mameluke swords were adopted by officers of light cavalry regiments in the first decade of the 19th century, The current regulation sword for generals, the 1831 Pattern, is a Mameluke-style sword.

Napoleon raised a number of Mameluke units during his Egyptian campaigns in the French Revolutionary Wars, leading to the adoption of this style of sword by many French officers. In the post-Napoleonic period French military fashion was widely adopted in Britain.

The Duke of Wellington carried a Mameluke sword from his days serving in India and throughout his career. After he defeated Napoleon his status was a national hero, Commander-in-Chief of the Forces, and then prime minister; as such, his tastes had considerable weight.
Trade between India and Sri Lanka through the Arabian Sea introduced wootz steel to Arabia. The term muhannad مهند or hendeyy هندي in pre-Islamic and early Islamic Arabic refers to sword blades made from Indian steel, which were highly prized, and are attested in Arabic poetry. Further trade spread the technology to the city of Damascus, where an industry developed for making weapons of this steel. This led to the development of Damascus steel. The 12th century Arab traveller Edrisi mentioned the "Hinduwani" or Indian steel as the best in the world. Arab accounts also point to the fame of 'Teling' steel, which can be taken to refer to the region of Telangana. The Golconda region of Telangana clearly being the nodal centre for the export of wootz steel to West Asia.

Another sign of its reputation is seen in a Persian phrase – to give an "Indian answer", meaning "a cut with an Indian sword". Wootz steel was widely exported and traded throughout ancient Europe and the Arab world, and became particularly famous in the Middle East.

From the 17th century onwards, several European travellers observed the steel manufacturing in South India, at Mysore, Malabar and Golconda. The word "wootz" appears to have originated as a mistranscription of wook; the Tamil language root word for the alloy is urukku.17 Another, which theory says that the word is a variation of uchcha or uchadubious ("superior"). According to one theory, the word ukku is based on the meaning "melt, dissolve". Other Dravidian languages have similar-sounding words for steel: ukku in Kannada1819 and Telugu, and urukku in Malayalam. When Benjamin Heyne inspected the Indian steel in Ceded Districts and other Kannada-speaking areas, he was informed that the steel was ucha kabbina ("superior iron"), also known as ukku tundu in Mysore.

Legends of wootz steel and Damascus swords aroused the curiosity of the European scientific community from the 17th to the 19th century. The use of high-carbon alloys was little known in Europe22 previously and thus the research into wootz steel played an important role in the development of modern English, French and Russian metallurgy.23

In 1790, samples of wootz steel were received by Sir Joseph Banks, president of the British Royal Society, sent by Helenus Scott. These samples were subjected to scientific examination and analysis by several experts.242526

Specimens of daggers and other weapons were sent by the Rajas of India to the Great Exhibition in London in 1851 and 1862 International Exhibition. Though the arms of the swords were beautifully decorated and jeweled, they were most highly prized for the quality of their steel. The swords of the Sikhs were said to bear bending and crumpling, and yet be fine and sharp

We show several images from portraits or statues in the gallery of 19th century British Generals, all with identical swords
The statue of General Havelock in Trafalgar Square, London British General such as Nicholson Of Delhi, with his identical sword
A statue of Sir James Outram by Matthew Noble, in Whitehall Gardens, London
+ The portrait of General Havelock

Antique ivory, 'worked' declaration submitted, but we can only sell this sword within the UK, it is not allowed for export. Ivory, however old cannot be imported into the USA.

ref; Manouchehr Moshtagh Khorasani 750 page tome on Arms and Armour, Wootz patterns, page 540  read more

Code: 25361

A Wonderful, Museum Piece. A Rare, Ancient Bronze and Iron Incredibly Long, High Status, Combat Cavalry Sword. 36 Inches Long. A Finely Engraved 'Eared' Bronze Hilt With a Long Iron Back Sword Blade. Around 3200 Years Old

Ancient Near East long sword 12th to 9th century BC. A magnificent, enormous bronze sword of the "double ear" pommel style, likely made using the lost wax casting technique by highly trained urban artisans for an elite member of a nomadic horse-riding clan. The blade was forged in iron first, and then the handle was cast onto it - scans of similar swords have revealed tangs inside the handles. Size: Hilt 9.75 inches long, 3 inches width at its widest x blade 30" long width at widest 1.25 inches, total overall length 39.35 inches

This well-balanced weapon has a slender, hilt, with raised decorative elements on each of the four sides joining to a pommel that divides into two finely decorated semi-circular "ears" at right angles to the blade. A polyform hilt with cylindrical grip geometrically engraved with a ruled herringbone pattern, carefully designed with crescent-shaped horns extends down to firmly grip the upper end of the prominent blade midrib that tapers regularly with almost straight single cutting edge to a point.

The "double ear" style of sword - with both bronze and iron blades - have been excavated from graves in southern Azerbaijan, the Talish and Dailaman regions of northwest Iran, and the urban sites of Geoy Tepe and Hasanlu, also in northwestern Iran. Another, with both bronze pommel and blade, was pulled from the Caspian Sea, where it may have been thrown as an offering.

It seems that swords like this example were not just made to be used in battle, but instead to show status or as votive weapons. There is a strong tradition in the ancient Near East of swords and other weapons being associated with the gods. For example, there is a rock carving dating to ca. 1300 BCE from this region that shows a scene of the gods of the Underworld, including one who is holding a sword similar to this one. Similarly, a golden bowl excavated at Hasanlu (northwestern Iran) shows three swords of similar form to this one that are associated with three deities from the Hittite pantheon. Whatever its original function, this would have been a spectacular weapon to behold, with a deep, shining surface when polished. Whoever commissioned this sword must have been an elite individual of high status, perhaps seeking to honour the gods by handling such a weapon.

This is a most handsome ancient bronze weapon from the era of the so called Trojan Wars. The ancient Greeks believed the Trojan War was a historical event that had taken place in the 13th or 12th century BC, and believed that Troy was located in modern day Turkey near the Dardanelles. In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans (Greeks) after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, the king of Sparta. The war is among the most important events in Greek mythology and was narrated in many works of Greek literature, including Homer's Iliad and the Odyssey . "The Iliad" relates a part of the last year of the siege of Troy, while the Odyssey describes the journey home of Odysseus, one of the Achaean leaders. Other parts of the war were told in a cycle of epic poems, which has only survived in fragments. Episodes from the war provided material for Greek tragedy and other works of Greek literature, and for Roman poets such as Virgil and Ovid.

The war originated from a quarrel between the goddesses Athena, Hera, and Aphrodite, after Eris, the goddess of strife and discord, gave them a golden apple, sometimes known as the Apple of Discord, marked "for the fairest". Zeus sent the goddesses to Paris, who judged that Aphrodite, as the "fairest", should receive the apple. In exchange, Aphrodite made Helen, the most beautiful of all women and wife of Menelaus, fall in love with Paris, who took her to Troy. Agamemnon, king of Mycenae and the brother of Helen's husband Menelaus, led an expedition of Achaean troops to Troy and besieged the city for ten years due to Paris' insult. After the deaths of many heroes, including the Achaeans Achilles and Ajax, and the Trojans Hector and Paris, the city fell to the ruse of the Trojan Horse. The Achaeans slaughtered the Trojans (except for some of the women and children whom they kept or sold as slaves) and desecrated the temples, thus earning the gods' wrath. Few of the Achaeans returned safely to their homes and many founded colonies in distant shores. The Romans later traced their origin to Aeneas, one of the Trojans, who was said to have led the surviving Trojans to modern day Italy. Made in copper bronze in the Western Asiatic region. Western Asiatic bronzes refer to items dating from roughly 1200-800 BC that have been excavated since the late 1920's in the Harsin, Khorramabad and Alishtar valleys of the Zagros Mountains especially at the site of Tepe Sialk. Scholars believe they were created by either the Cimmerians or by such related Indo-European peoples as the early Medes and Persians. Weapons from this region were highly sought after by warriors of many cultures because of their quality, balance and durability.

The Battle of Thermopylae
The first decision, to hold the narrow Vale of Tempe between Macedonia and Thessaly, was abandoned when it was realised that the position could easily be turned. The Greeks then occupied the still narrower pass of Thermopylae with 6,000 or 7,000 hoplites and stationed 271 triremes at Artemisium in northern Euboea. The positions were linked by communication between the Spartan commanders, King Leonidas at Thermopylae and Eurybiades at Artemisium, who intended to halt and damage the Persian forces. Meanwhile, Xerxes was advancing slowly. He made no use of separate columns, and his fleet suffered heavy losses in a storm when it was convoying supply ships along the coast. It was already August when Xerxes began the operations, which extended over three days.

On the first day, Xerxes sent a detachment of 200 ships, unseen by the Greeks, to sail around Euboea and close the narrows of the Euripus Strait. He also attacked with his best infantry at Thermopylae, where the Greeks inflicted heavy casualties. During the afternoon the Greek fleet, having learned about the Persian detachment from a deserter, engaged the main Persian fleet with some success. The Greeks intended to sail south that night and destroy the detachment the next day, but a tremendous storm kept the Greeks at Artemisium and wrecked the 200 Persian ships off south Euboea. On the second day, news of the Persian disaster was brought up by a reinforcing squadron of 53 Athenian ships. Xerxes attacked again with no success at Thermopylae, and the Greeks sank some Cilician vessels off Artemisium.

A Greek traitor, Ephialtes, offered to guide the Persians along a mountain path and turn the position at Thermopylae. The Immortals, a cadre of elite Persian infantry, were entrusted to him. At dawn on the third day, they began to descend toward the plain behind the Greek position. Leonidas retained the troops of Sparta, Thespiae, and Thebes and sent the remainder south. He then advanced. He and his soldiers fought to the death, except the Thebans, who surrendered. Meanwhile, the Persian fleet attacked at noon. Both sides suffered heavy losses, and the Greeks realized that they could succeed only in narrower waters. That evening, when the fall of Thermopylae was known, the Greek fleet withdrew down the Euboic channel and took station in the narrow straits of Salamis.

For reference see: Moorey P.R.S. "Catalogue of Ancient Persian Bronzes in the Ashmolean Museum" (1971), pg. 80 fig 63, Mahboubian, H. "Art of Ancient Iran" pg 304 386(a) & (b) and pg 314-315 397a-I, Moorey PRS "Ancient Persian Bronzes in the Adam Collection" pg 58 28 and Muscarella "Bronze and Iron, Ancient Near Eastern Artifacts in the Metropolitan Museum of Art" pgs 282-285 385-390.


The British Museum holds an example of the "double ear" style that is smaller than this one (ME 124630).
Formerly from a famed US Californian collector Mr Retting, he acquired this sword in the 1960's  read more

Code: 25355

Another Reason To Visit Brighton-by-the-Sea This Summer. To Visit the Magnificent Pavilion Palace & View ‘The Encampment At Brighton’, by Francis Wheatley, RA, 1747-1801. Which We Were Most Proud To Assist & Enable It’s Donation to Brighton 50 Years Ago

Two years ago we celebrated the completion of a multi million pound three year restoration of the main saloon in the Royal Pavilion palace in Brighton, and we are continually humbled to know that our family donation enabled the premier work of art, of a depiction of an hussars regiment, encamped in the hills above Brighton, by Francis Wheatley RA, and thus to be saved for posterity for the Brighton Museum collection.
Possibly their most famous work of art, certainly one of their best. 'The Encampment at Brighton', is a major work by Francis Wheatley RA (1747?1801). (b London, 1747; d London, 28 June 1801). A most fine English painter of his day in the reign of King George IIIrd. His early works were mainly small full-length portraits and conversation pieces in the manner of Zoffany. In 1779 he moved to Dublin to escape creditors, and after his return to London in 1783 his work broadened in scope. It included landscapes, history paintings, and life-size portraits, but he is best known for works produced to be engraved for the Georgian print market. His works now reside in the government collection, the Royal Collection and many of the finest museums and collections around the country.
We were delighted to have enabled its acquisition, back in 1973, and over the past few decades we have been pleased to know of its permanent presence in the City collection, saved for posterity and enabling the museums visitors to view this magnificent work based and painted in Brighton in the 1790's.
Any visitors to Brighton this summer, who make a visit to our world famous store, The Lanes Armoury, ought to consider visiting Brighton Museum as part of your visit, in order to view its superb collection, and especially visit our magnificent Royal Pavilion, former summer palace of King George IVth, {former the Prince Regent} donated to Brighton by Her Majesty Queen Victoria, and considered today, by many, to be the most wonderful palace of its kind in the world.

A joyous combination of Indo-Chinese architecture and fine art. A magnificent example of the Royal Family’s diversity, 200 years before the word even became known, and as so significant as it is today.

Brighton has been for centuries a long exponent of diversity, and without doubt certainly one of the best most loved and diverse cities in the entire world. For example, during World War I, the Royal Pavilion palace’s royal stables, that later became the world famous Dome Theatre, was turned over to become a hospital for the desperately wounded, heroic, Indian, volunteer soldiers, it is said that many Indian soldiers when they recovered consciousness and awoke in the palace, believed they had died and gone to heaven, which was a recreation of an Indian Palace.
It was almost 60 years later The Dome Theatre was the host venue of ABBA’s very first public explosion on to the world stage, in fact Mark, {the Lanes Armoury’s elder partner} was coincidentally there in person, just outside the stage area, listening to their very first hit, Waterloo, {somewhat ironic with our Waterloo interest} at the Eurovision Song Contest over 50 years ago.

The Royal Pavilion contains some of the finest and most magnificent Chinoiserie works of art to seen anywhere in the world. Some of the original Prince’s treasures were, very recently, just returned from the Buckingham Palace Royal Apartments, to be once more placed on display in the Royal Pavilion in Brighton, as one of the last, and personal benevolent instructions of Her Late Well Beloved Majesty Queen Elizabeth IInd. In order that once more, our city, and it’s millions of visitors, can enjoy the fabulous royal treasures in their original, former, location, the magnificent home of the Prince Regent.

Somewhat like us at The Lanes Armoury, the Royal Pavilion is certainly not one of the largest of the world’s Royal Palaces, in fact, it is possibly one of the smallest, but it is considered, by many, to be the very best.

We also show in the gallery a painting by Richard {Dickie} Compton, commissioned by our family from the artist, of our Holland & Holland, London to Bath and Wells, Royal Mail Road Coach, passing in front of the statue of The Prince Regent, which itself is in front of the Royal Pavilion. The road coach, later photographed, still in use in 1969, outside of the gates to the Royal Pavillion, and the oil painting are part of the late Camilla Hawkins Collection.

As like many Brightonians, our personal family connections to the palace go back since it was first built, over two hundred years ago. Our family used to supply shellfish from the shores off Brighton for His Majesty’s table {we held the shellfish concession for many decades in the 18th and 19th century}. A family member worked in the staff -a very lowly position naturally, bearing in mind, our family history, always was, and still is, in ‘trade’, once considered by 19th century ‘society’ to be, at the time, as not particularly in much higher regard than *coster mongers-. We later owned the annex of the Royal Stables, a stable yard around 100 yards from the palace, now demolished and on the site of the current My Hotel in Jubilee Street. And in the early 1970’s Mark purchased from an elderly farmer in the North, the original huge pump organ made for the Prince Regent’s music room in the palace. But it was either never installed, or, if it was, it was not much later removed by Queen Victoria, and sold off. When Mark bought it, it had the original schematic and plans for installation, which were magnificent in their beauty and detail, somewhat like the architects plans much have been for the original palace. We offered to donate it to the Palace Trustees in the 1970’s, but it was refused as impractical to re-install, unless we paid for its installation, but the cost involved would have been prohibitively astronomical. So, we sold it to an Australian diocese instead, and apparently it was installed not much later in an Australian Cathedral.

* coster monger or hawker, A costermonger, coster, or costard was a street seller of fruit and vegetables, sometimes fish, in British towns. The term is derived from the words costard (a medieval variety of apple) and monger (seller), and later came to be used to describe hawkers in general. In fact our family name, Hawkins, was a medieval derivative from Hawker, which would therefore, have been our family trade and social position in the post Roman occupation era. Pretty low down the social scale, before our family moved to Plymouth, and our seafaring nature brought some element of success, and thus the elevation with a knighthood for Sir John Hawkins, and Sir Francis Drake, his cousin, who was later Admiral for Queen Elizabeth Ist. Drake was John’s cousin due to being adopted by William Hawkins, famed seafarer of Plymouth, and thought to have been adopted, as possibly being his bastard son.
Sir Francis Drake's heraldic achievement and coat of arms contains the motto, Sic Parvis Magna, which means: "Great achievements from small beginnings". Drake became the first Englishman to navigate the Straits of Magellan, a sea route at the southern tip of South America linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans  read more

Code: 21652

A Superb 500 Year Old Koto Era Muramachi Period Katana With Clan Mon Of The Atagi Clan of Naval Samurai. Silver Habaki Engraved with the Atagi Crest Mon

Superb Koto blade in very fine polish showing stunning activity. When it first arrived the blade looked super but had a few very light old fingerprint stains, after two months away for conservation it now looks absolutely wonderful, likely just as it did when it left Japan after it was presented to an Englishman in the 1870’s. It has very fine quality Edo period shakudo and shibuishi mounts, including a fuchi decorated with takebori pure gold monkeys climbing a tree on a nanako ground.

Nanako Ji: "fish roe ground" A surface decoration produced by forming very small raised bosses by a sharply struck punch or burin called 'nanako tagane'. Shakudo is the metal most often used, but copper and gold are quite often employed. The harder metals, shibuichi, silver and iron are rarely decorated in this way. The size of the dots vary from 0.04" to 0.008" (25 to 125 and inch) and the regularity of the work is marvellous as the dots must be spaced entirely by touch. The dots are usually arranged in straight lines or in lines parallel to the edge of the piece being decorated, but sometimes in more elaborate patterns. Used on guards since the Momoyama period although the technique existed since much earlier periods. Usually done by specialist 'nanako-shi', but sometimes done by the maker of the guard himself.
A very similar example of a Fuchi with gold monkeys, possibly by the same Japanese craftsman, is in the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore USA.

The kashira is decorated with gold and silver sea shells and sea grasses, and the tsuba has a shakado basket, a jingasa helmet and the ninja angle bladed hand weapon with chain called a Kusarigama, and a ninja shikome-zue a hidden sword disguised as a walking stick. Very fine pure gold decorated shakudo menuki under the Edo silk binding, and the Edo saya has a fine ishime stone finish lacquer. Very good and well defined gunome based on suguha hamon.

Used by a high ranking samurai retainer of the samurai Governor of Settsu, Fuyuyasu, who in his turn served as a highest rank retainer of the Miyoshi clan and a samurai Captain of the Awaji Navy. He was the third son of Miyoshi Motonaga and adopted by the Atagi clan. The Atagi were related to the Miyoshi clan and served the Mioyshi clan. They commanded ships for the Miyoshi clan crewed by samurai. Fuyuyasu served as captain of the Awaji Navy in support of the Miyoshi governance, but was killed by his eldest brother, Miyoshi Nagayoshi. There are many views and uncertainties regarding the reasons for the incident.

Fuyuyasu’s father, Motonaga, reached a settlement with Hosokawa Harumoto, in 1531, only to be killed the following year by monks acting in concert with Harumoto’s rival, Hosokawa Takakuni. Harumoto served as a sengoku daimyō and kanrei, or deputy shōgun, to Ashikaga Yoshiharu. Harumoto was the final kanrei of the Muromachi period to exercise real authority.

The Atagi clan served as the navy for Awaji Province. His older brother, Nagayoshi, was driven out of the Kinai and went to the island province of Awaji. Nagayoshi arranged for Fuyuyasu to be adopted by Atagi Haruoki, lord of the Atagi clan, and to become his successor.

On behalf of the Miyoshi clan, Nagayoshi led soldiers on battles in Settsu, Kawachi, and Izumi provinces. Fuyuyasu’s next eldest brother, Miyoshi Jikkyū, operated in Awa Province. Fuyuyasu served in Awaji, and his younger brother, Sogō Kazumasa, in Sanuki Province. Fuyuyasu participated in suppression actions near Ōsaka Bay, the Battle of Kitashirakawa against Hosokawa Harumoto in 1558, and the Battle of Kumeda against Hatakeyama Takamasa in 1562, causing the loss of his brother, Jikkyū. Fuyuyasu retreated to Awa, and just months later, prevailed against Takamasa at the Battle of the Kōkyō Temple in the Takayasu District of Kawachi Province.

Thereafter, Kazumasa, Jikkyū, and Miyoshi Yoshioki (Nagayoshi’s eldest son and Fuyuyasu’s nephew), all died in succession. Fuyuyasu made great efforts supporting Nagayoshi in a bid for survival of the Miyoshi family. Nevertheless, in 1564, Fuyuyasu was summoned to Iimoriyama Castle and forced to kill himself at the age of thirty-eight. His son, Atagi Nobuyasu, became his successor. The naval history of Japan began with early interactions with states on the Asian continent in the 3rd century BCE during the Yayoi period. It reached a pre-modern peak of activity during the 16th century, a time of cultural exchange with European powers and extensive trade with the Asian continent.
The Sengoku period (15th–16th century)
Various daimyo clans undertook major naval building efforts in the 16th century, during the Sengoku period, when feudal rulers vying for supremacy built vast coastal navies of several hundred ships. The largest of these ships were called atakebune. Around that time, Japan seems to have developed one of the first ironclad warships in history, when Oda Nobunaga, a Japanese daimyo, had six iron-covered Ō-atakebune ("Great Atakebune") made in 1576 . These ships were called tekkosen (鉄甲船), literally "iron armoured ships", and were armed with multiple cannons and large calibre rifles to defeat the large, but all wooden, vessels of the enemy. With these ships, Nobunaga defeated the Mori clan navy at the mouth of the Kizu River, near Osaka in 1578, and began a successful naval blockade. The O-atakebune are regarded as floating fortresses rather than true warships, however, and were only used in coastal actions. After over two centuries of self-imposed seclusion under the Tokugawa shogunate, Japan's naval technologies became outdated compared to Western navies. The country was forced to abandon its maritime restrictions by American intervention with the Perry Expedition in 1854. As to be expected the blade has a few light fingerprint stains. overall in saya 37.25 inches, blade tsuba to tip 26.3 inches long It is important to bear in mind, that due to the revered status that Japanese swords achieve for most of their working lives in Japan, that the condition they survive in can be simply remarkable. One can see just how remarkable it can be, by comparing the condition of this fine sword that was made around the same time as the early Tudor period of King Henry the VIIIth to any equivalent aged, surviving, early Tudor period sword, from any country outside of Japan, and that comparison will show just how fine any Japanese sword’s state of preservation, from the same era, truly can be.  read more

Code: 23644