Suggestions On School, If Any, Of This Menuki?

[jct3602]

Hi all

    Nice but not the best; all gold; not foil or plated.  Just the one, would appreciate thoughts if someone notices some distinctive detail.

 

Yours,

john

[jct3602]

Hi All:

     More pictures.  A slight blue shift from cellphone camera in late day twilight.

 

Yours,

john

[Ford Hallam]

Hi John

 

I'm afraid I'd have to suggest that these are brass and only gold plated. That they are brass further suggests, to me, that they are cast copies and almost certainly, therefore, modern. 

The other giveaway is the copper 'ashi' on the backs that have been lead soldered in place. No sensible craftsman would use lead solder on gold because it will eat into the metal and horribly contaminate it.

 

Sorry to be the barer of bad news.

 

regards

 

  Ford

[jct3602]

HI Ford;

     Thank you for the heads up; was a very tiny outlay, so not a huge disappointment.  Am going to the San Francisco Token Kai next week, so will ask my friend Blaine Navroth about it along with other pieces.  Only have had one person see it up close with a loupe, and he is a sword maker (Michael Bell), not a furniture specialist.   He had some experience with furniture while apprenticing in sword making with Nakajima, but that was many years ago, and dealt more with making habaki and tsuba then menuki.  

 

Yours,

john

[Ford Hallam]

Hi John

 

if you want to try a little home test yourself you could put the menuki in a sealed tupperware container, or similar, with a small cap of household ammonia. If I'm correct the fumes will cause the exposed brass to tarnish overnight whereas any gold will remain unaffected.

 

NOTE: To any wannabe restorers. Do not try this method to attempt to recover lost patina on tosogu. This is fine for brass hardware on furniture but could seriously damage traditional alloys, and the tarnish can easily develop into a problematic green verdigris.

 

regards

 

Ford

[Brian]

Speaking from experience though, it does a wonderful job of aging a small brass part or 2 on a Tanegashima that needs a trigger guard or pin.
Just the fumes...you don't let the liquid touch the piece. Suspend it inside a glass jar etc, with a small capfull as Ford said.