Jump to content

Koshirae Design for a Nihonto in shira-saya...


Soshin

Recommended Posts

Hi Everyone,

 

I traded a number of tsuba for a beefy ko-wakizashi in shira-saya and two-piece silver foil habaki with a fine kesho style art polish. I have been trying to but together the fitting for a well matched koshirea that is age appropriate. What I have so far is a tsuba and fuchi-gashira circa the Middle Edo Period made of shakudo and gold. (see below) What would be a good size and design for a set of menuki? They should be made of shakudo, gold, or both I think. The only thing I think I need is the set of matching menuki as the ko-wakizashi will not be mounted with a kozuka or kogai. For the saya I was thinking basic black water buffalo horn fittings would be nice for the korigata, kojiri, the opening of the saya. I forgot what that is called in Japanese. For the tsuka I was thinking white ito with a natural color ray skin, and a black polish saya finish. If someone has a photo that they can share of a antique koshirae like this it would be great for reference. Thank you.

post-1126-14196943149401_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yay,

 

I like projects, and have to say right off the bat, white ito over white same? With black saya? Personally, I don't see how you can resist the urge to lacquer the same, and I'd never consider white ito...cream maybe. In fact, I'm probably gonna be as daring as this two-tone lacquer

 

http://www007.upp.so-net.ne.jp/m-kenji/ ... hirae.html

 

but of course you may not want such. As for menuki, I'd recommend anything about 2", and as raised as possible for sufficient bulge. Our first set was disappointingly flat. The horn koiguchi, kojiri and kurigata all sound good...we're using these and adding some nickel silver plate to match the seppa, but I'm finishing them matte rather than polished. We even aged our sageo and silk so that the whole effect is utilitarian and seasoned. Your tsuba and FK are rather plain/unassuming (which I prefer) so maybe consider similar thinking? And in which case, white ito?

 

Off to find some pictures...

 

edit: Re: the menuki metals, and b/c your tsuba and FK have little to no gold (we also have no gold), we've found that our shakudo has enough color in it w/o the need for any precious metals. In fact, parts of them are a distinctly chocolate brown, while the main part is nicely toned with natural variegation.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Since it looks like you'd be recreating a more formal or reserved type of koshirae, maybe a good way to go would be menuki in the form of shishi or shishi with peony? I think gold or shakudo, one solid color without highlights or accents would be pleasing, (1 1/2 to 2 inches seem like they would be a good size for a smaller wakizashi too.)

 

Below are a couple swords with white/cream ito, from Nihonto.us

http://www.nihonto.us/MUMEI%20WAKIZASHI%20MP.htm

 

http://www.nihonto.us/HOJOJI%20MASAHIRO%20WAKIZASHI.htm

 

Hope you're successful and post pictures of your project once it's finished.

 

Regards,

Lance

post-2802-14196943178656_thumb.jpg

post-2802-14196943182234_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Doug C. and Lance;

 

Thanks for all the help. Lance's second wakizashi example is similar to mine as my blade is a beefy hirazukure shape but both koshirae are the style I had in mind with white/cream ito, natural color ray skin, white/cream sageo, black glossy saya, and black water buffalo horn saya fittings. This is a long term project for me and I don't expect to get all the needed parts together quickly. Over the weekend I will try to do better photos of tsuba with my real digital camera on my old iPhone. The surface of the gold plugs on the tsuba are a work of art in of themselves that really require better photography to capture. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: Lance's examples, I'm reminded that when we were considering saya finishes, I had absolutely decided on the ishime finish, both for its texture and because I'm allergic to anything glossy. We're also going with something b/t these two kojiri, neither flat nor bull-nosed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: Lance's examples, I'm reminded that when we were considering saya finishes, I had absolutely decided on the ishime finish, both for its texture and because I'm allergic to anything glossy.

 

Hi Doug C.,

 

I don't think the ishime finish would look good given that many of the tosogu in my set are polished shakudo. Glossy black finish for the saya would in my opinion look the best given the texture of the other fittings. Later today or tomorrow I will present a few set of menuki I found that I think would look good to obtain feedback.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Doug C.,

 

Sorry I can't really help but best of luck. I am going to get a professional to do my koshirae construction work. On the subject of menuki I have found the following searching the internet that I like and are considering.

 

Shakudo Ox menuki (3.31 cm)

http://www.sanmei.com/contents/media/menuki_hilt_ornament1247.html

From Tokugawa art website.

 

Shakudo with gold inlay Shi-Shi Dog Menuki (3.16 cm)

http://tetsugendo.com/images/kodogu/M-140_Goto_Shishi_1200.jpg

From Mike Y. website Tetsugendo.com.

 

Find any other in a similar style and size please reply. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

David:

 

My vote is for the Shi-Shi on Tetsugendo. I would probably not mount them though.

 

 

I saw the Hojoji Masahiro on Andy's table. It was a nice piece, and fun to compare to my mumei example.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Jon,

 

I also remember seeing it at the Philly show now after thinking about it some more. Seeing the koshirae likely influenced me with wanting to but together something similar for my ko-wakizashi. Don't worry if I get Mike Y.'s menuki I will mount them but they can still be enjoyed on the tsuka of a very nice art sword. For now I am going to keep looking and saving my money. :D

 

P.S. Get to go to the post office tomorrow to pick up my new nihonto. Needless to say I can't wait. :lol:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Guido,

 

Thanks for posting photos of your similar koshirae. Looks really nice. Thank you. :D

 

P.S. Here is a much better photo of the tsuba I want to use for the koshirae. I think the tsuba would be classified as a Kinko Kenjo but beyond that I don't know. :dunno: Maybe some of NMB members who study and collector soft metal tosogu can identify it better. Love the gold plugs! :Drooling:

post-1126-14196943535639_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Everyone,

 

I was wondering if the current tsuba I have selected at 6.8 cm wide by 7.9 cm high might be a bit too large for a ko-wakazashi with only a 34.3 cm nagasa? Here is a link to the topic about the ko-wakazashi with photos: http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=20472. Here is a better photo of the matching fuchi-gashira set.

post-1126-14196945983973_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This thread is quite old. Please consider starting a new thread rather than reviving this one, unless your post is really relevant and adds to the topic..

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...