SOLD IMPORTANT JAPANESE WW2 RARE EARLY COPPER HANDLED TYPE 95 ARMY SWORD FOR NCO’S

This is a very scarce and important very early production Japanese Army Type 95 NCO Sword.  this rare early solid copper handled sword, serial number 631 is all matching and it is also one of the very few known to exist that still has the original leather tassel hanger (saru-te).  This sword is actually pictured on page 191 of Dawson’s book Swords of Imperial Japan 1868-1945 Cyclopedia Edition.  Standard production NCO swords have an aluminum grip, however the first few thousand of those made at the beginning of production in 1937 were made with a copper handle. The Tsuba is also slightly thicker and the drag on the bottom of the scabbard is flush with the scabbard and just forms a tip unlike the typical sword drag on the standard production variants.  Simply put, this is a huge big deal Japanese sword, we have had three of these in 30 years and only a hundred or less or even thought to still exist.  This one is pictured in the definitive book so it is certainly a doubly desirable piece for any Japanese military collector as it is the ultimate NCO sword.