Nodowa edging

[Bugyotsuji]

There is nothing wrong with the Nodowa which I wear for armoured displays, but our troop leader handed me three bits of edging and said "Why not put those on your Nodowa?" Well, I was a little taken aback, but he assured me they are genuine bits, and that two friends of his were after them. "I would prefer that you have them first he said, handing them to me and Mr Doi, the guy I usually shoot alongside in line.

 

My Nodowa has up-turned corners, which I have been assured is a plus factor. It will mean however I will have to bend these brass strengtheners to follow the tweaked corners. (The only work I have ever done on it was to change the rotten strings which tie at the back of the neck.)

 

"You will, however, have to find some Byo (chrysanthemum pins) for them." Well, I found a man with a bag of Byo at an antiques fair, but he wanted 300 JPY for each and not a penny less, even if I were to ask for 9 of them. "2,700 yen", he said firmly. For 9 brass pins, that is around $35 US or 25 GBP.

 

Luckily however, I mentioned my predicament to a dealer friend last week and he told me to help myself to any from his considerably smaller stock!

 

So here are the pics of my regular Nodowa, and the metal reinforcement decorations, an Edo feature, according to Sasama Sensei. He assures us that they are properly called ”Kazetome no kanamono” 風留の金物 though how they stop the wind is anyone's guess.

 

Two of the triangular sections had Ao-sabi 'blue rust' 青錆 from the oxidised copper content of the brass, and I was forced to try a) boiling b) scraping with a bone spatula c) brushing with a nylon brush, a horse-hair brush and/or a brass brush and d) adding a very light oil. Of these the bone/antler spatula was most useful for shifting chunks of blue powdery rust. The brass brush was very little help.

 

So I managed to get the equipment together, but I dread the thought of him drilling holes in the Nodowa to take the chrysanthemum Byo. I am hoping that he will recommend cutting off and bending the pin shafts and gluing(?) the pieces in place in such a manner that would allow disassembly as and when necessary in the future, with no harm done to the Nodowa.

[Baka Gaijin]

Good morning Piers,

 

Although totally unorthadox, you could first sew the metal pieces to the himo using a half circle needle in the area of the 3 square holes. The long prongs on the capping tops could then be cut and turned to make for want of a better term a thread loop and then also sewn in using a running knot. If you are neat and use a yellow/brown thread, you won't see how they are fixed.........

 

Not easy, but the only detriment will be to the himo and not the metal

 

Just a thought.

 

Cheers

[IanB]

Piers, Kanamono like these are fastened in place by pushing the legs of the rivets through the same holes as the lacing. You should not drill any extra holes. I notice they do not seem to have much of a turned down flange at the lower edges which should give you a bit of leeway with positioning. My favourite tool for jobs like this is an arrow head. The long tapering tang is perfect for finding a hole and displacing the braid to one side so that I can get the legs of the rivet through. It is also perfect for straightening out the braid after threading it through a hole and similar applications. The head can be a bit tough on the hand when applying a bit of pressure, but we all have to suffer. :lol: :lol:

Ian Bottomley

[estcrh]

There is nothing wrong with the Nodowa which I wear for armoured displays, but our troop leader handed me three bits of edging and said "Why not put those on your Nodowa?"

Piers, I have heard of pimping your ride but pimping your nodowa? Why would someone made such a request?

[Bugyotsuji]

Eric, as usual you come along and ask a good question. For me, every time something like this happens, it is an opportunity to slip back in time to when exactly the same thing would have been happening hundreds of years ago. People liked adding decoration that was partly-functional and partly-gorgeous in appearance, and may have been the latest in-fashion at the time.

 

If you look at regular armor/armour and then splendid armour, there are many differences involved in the finer points of the decoration. These kazetome no kanamono are one such example, and you can find them on the Shikoro, on the Gesan and really anywhere on good armour that the lacquer edging might catch and chip.

 

It is like pimping your ride, indeed. When we gather ready for a display it is interesting to watch the members approaching each other and pointing out new features in each other's armour and nodding and grunting in approval. It's a sort of ritual and strengthens ties between different members. You feel good if someone compliments you on your new Maedate, and you have a warm remembrance of that person. You may not want to do this with someone you do not really feel any affinity with, however! Our leader comes round and adjusts bits of our armor/armour, complimenting us on fine bits. Before a battle this must have happened and it must have warmed the troops' hearts, I can imagine.

[Bugyotsuji]

Malcolm, Ian, many thanks. I was afraid of what was going to happen to my precious Nodowa, but you have reassured me there is nothing to be scared of, and the process is not impossible and does not involve destruction of cultural artifacts! I know what he is proposing to do now.

 

As usual I approached this thing arse/ass backwards but it has been an enjoyable learning process along the way. I hope the photos were instructive, and I beg forgiveness for my ignorance once more. I also beg your understanding as I am sure this kind of thing will happen again. Thanking you all for your patience!