No worries, Kevin.
Ah that's a pity it's right handed then. I was lucky to get a lefty Yanagiba and Deba made by Kenichi Shiraki when I was in Sakai.
Regarding the chips, if they're not rusted over, it can be interesting to have a look at the cross section under magnification. It should look like densely evenly packed dark sand. It doesn't really tell you much about the steel if it's good, but it can show irregularities in steel that wasn't forged or heat treated properly.
Murray Carter told me that if you examine a chip in optimally heat treated steel, the very edge of the break on one side should have a tiny ridge you can feel with your fingernail, a bit like a burr, where the steel has just started to plastically deform, then chipped out. Apparently it shows that the balance of toughness and strength was just right.
If the break is completely clean edged, like glass, it supposedly demonstrates the the steel was overhardened.
It'll be interesting to hear what an expert thinks of it. It's certainly a cool conversation piece as is.