Flattened Dot Inlay

[Steves87]

Hello all, I have this Tsuba which has dot inlays which are 'flattened' or near flush with the base metal. My question is a quick one and hopefully simple, are the inlays supposed to be like this (flat) or is this a product of time and wear and the inlays should be raised/domed?

Thank you for your time viewing

 

 

[TETSUGENDO]

Hi Stephen,

 

The inlaid dots you are referring to, generally start out as hemispheres and  often become flattened down by wear and use.

 

Cheers,

    -S-

[Steves87]

Thank you Steven, I had sort of assumed that would be the case, until today I had seen a similar style Tsuba and the inlays were also worn down... this made me question if it was on purpose

[TETSUGENDO]

Stephen,

 

A side note- If mishandled (stored in unpadded trays,etc) for extended periods of time the highest quality inlays (solid gold) can flatten out rather quickly....this condition is referred to as 'cabinet friction'.  Lower quality inlays of gilt brass or copper alloy will keep their contours longer but loose their coloring. 

 

Cheers,

    -S-

[ROKUJURO]

Stephen,

I am not sure about the provenance or production process of your TSUBA. It does not look traditionally made, so any guesses about the inlaid dots should come later.    

[Steves87]

Fair enough Jean, what would be the tell tail signs this is not traditionally made? I am genuinely interested in finding out more as to why.

I know the Tsuba is in a somewhat rough condition and potentially has a non original coating on it. Is it perhaps because it is unsigned and in a Kaneie (spelling) style?

[Steves87]

Stephen,

 

A side note- If mishandled (stored in unpadded trays,etc) for extended periods of time the highest quality inlays (solid gold) can flatten out rather quickly....this condition is referred to as 'cabinet friction'.  Lower quality inlays of gilt brass or copper alloy will keep their contours longer but loose their coloring. 

 

Cheers,

    -S-

Thank you! It makes sense, but I did not know this

[MauroP]

Hi Stephen,

Dome-shaped ten-zōgan are typical of Ōnin tsuba, but yours looks like a Shōami one, so a flat inlay may well be in the original condition.

See here 2 of my tsuba with flat inlays.

[Steves87]

Thank you Mauro, I am currently reading about Onin and Heianjo at the moment. I will research Shoami as my next research

[TETSUGENDO]

Stephen,

 

Research is great, but in this case is not applicable to your tsuba:  1-your tsuba is not a casting.   2- simple direct observation shows that the inlay on your tsuba did not start out flat.   3- Mauros' exemplars show TWO distinctly different types of inlay, the first one shows RAISED dot inlay, the second flat inlay of an unrelated pattern so the point of the comparison....simply leaves me scratching my head?

                                                                                                                         

 

Cheers,

    -S-

[Steves87]

Thank you Steven

[MauroP]

Hi Steven,

actually the entire surface on my stuba is very irregular, and the inlays follow the  up-and-down surface (but I definitely need better pics to show it).

[ROKUJURO]

.....what would be the tell tail signs this is not traditionally made?.....I know the Tsuba is in a somewhat rough condition and potentially has a non original coating on it. Is it perhaps because it is unsigned and in a Kaneie (spelling) style?

Stephen,

 

the surface treatment with very coarse grinding marks is not a TSUBAKO technique, and the NAKAGO-ANA has a shape that reminds me of later 'tourist' TSUBA. The neighbouring surface of KOGAI HITSU also looks a bit strange to me.

 

KANEIE style is mostly related to a realistic scenery or landscape (e.g. SANSUI). In your TSUBA I do not see anything realistic but a random design.

 

But all that may be my old eyes and/or the fact that I am looking only at photos.

[Steves87]

Thank you Jean, I understand and see what you mean regarding the nakago and hitsu shapes/ finishes.

The only reason I mentioned Kaneie was because of the similar surface treatment to the 'shoreline' Tsuba as seen on the 'Tsuba Gallery' website by Elliot Long.

 

Im ok with it being an un-original, was part of a lot I picked up for lunch money a while back

[TETSUGENDO]

Stephen,

 

I see no evidence of modern mechanical grinding on the surface of your tsuba.  Sometimes the simplest way to solve a riddle is common sense.  This is NOT the kind of thing that makes any sense to fake, certainly not with gold inlay ...not in the past....certainly  not now.  It is what it is,  a simple honest piece of no pretense, not new, not fake, not of great antiquity or value.  A lot of this quasi-early looking stuff was in vogue during the later two thirds of the 19th century, some of it was even made by informed amateur hands.

 

Cheers,

    -S-

p.s.-Mauro, I can see that.  One of the biggest problems in making judgments from modern consumer level digital photos, and the photo processing means commonly used post shot, is that one is often left with a visual minefield of artifacts obscuring what we are trying to see.

[Steves87]

Thank you Steven, my original question is answered and I have even learnt more about storage, so post has worked out well for me!

[Steves87]

by chance I was shown this photo a friend of mine took a few weeks ago. Instantly I understood.

 

 

 

[TETSUGENDO]

Tell your friend nice shot...makes the point!

 

-S-