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Thanks guys!! Yea this is something that is definitely the centerpiece of my collection and hierlloom worthy, @curran Haha, yes the whisky shall be poured! @tanto54 I’ve learnt so much about tosogu over the year and then in the past months so much about Ishiguro School and specifically Kato Teruaki’s works. I actually like all my previous purchases except one (a mumei minogame tsuba, since it appears to be mass produced and sold to foreigners). Every other tsuba I have is at least TH and I think visually tasteful. Also this Ishiguro tsuba is far more expensive than anything else I had @Higo-San Oh I know about kiri boxes and possible nail damage. I never travel or ship tsubas in the kiri box. Also that reminds me this tsuba definitely needs a custom kiri box made for it! I didn’t know about the shakudo and hands though, is that because oils could corrode the shakudo?

I recently acquired this tsuba by Ishiguro Teruaki, one of the last successors of the Ishiguro school and student of Ishiguro Masaaki. Mei says "Ichijuken Katō Teruaki (Hideaki) in the first month of Ansei three (1856), year of the dragon, on a shrine in Kanda." I have some high-end tsubas in my collection, but seeing this one in-person left me stunned. It's now my favorite tsuba and I've never owned any fitting of this level of craftsmanship so thought I would share: (First 2 photos under natural lighting, next 2 photos under a studio lamp). Some personal observations on the tsuba: -Every detail of the crane is crafted in meticulous detail. I get that whole Ishiguro school craft. I love how the feather end-tips flip up to give a sense of airiness and flow. -The waves have this incredible dimension and flow to them that carries to the ura side. -Crane and wave motif is very popular but I think this rendition is intended to focus on flow, perhaps wind. Happy holidays!

other than the "The Ishiguro School of Japanese Sword Fittings" book, are there any other good books documenting or about Ishiguro school fittings?

aww thank you! that makes a lot of sense

I honestly believe Ford is up there with the tosogu masters of the Edo period. This one here just stuns me in both conceptual design as well as technical execution. The reflection of the hitsu ana plug is so novel and the crisp details of the shoreline is so clean: ps. Ford if you're selling that above tsuba I'm paying big bucks for it

I don't want to start another thread just for this question, but was wondering who is Kato Hideaki of the Ishiguro school? I see a few of his works in the MFA and he's attributed to the Ishiguro school. But I don't see him in any of the Ishiguro school genealogy. Is he the same person as Kato Teruaki? (The Japanese toso-kinko Schools By Markus Sesko) (example of Kato Hideaki work) https://collections.mfa.org/objects/18837/kozuka-with-design-of-chidori-and-waves?ctx=977a04b1-f4e5-47d0-9d93-c9fc68cacf95&idx=57

2 Questions I've been wondering regarding the Ishiguro Kato Teruaki tsuba: https://www.hermann-historica.de/en/auctions/lot/id/33597 #1. The mei, it says "made in a shrine in Kanda?" what does that mean? never seen that before on any tsuba. #2. When HH lists the diameter as 7.7cm and the tsuba is oval shaped, is their measurement horizontal? vertical? or the longest chord of the tsuba?

So I definitely did not expect the Kato Teruaki to go that high at all. It doesn't have papers but the work speaks for itself. I may or may not have put a insanely high bid for it expecting it to not come close and now the hammer price is right up there....fffffffff -___-

Holy cow, some rlly nice stuff in there. Even items from the legendary Shibata Zeshin in there! Thanks for sharing

Interestingly enough, when we typically think of wolfs we think of the default larger North American wolfs. Japanese wolfs are actually quite smaller, like a dog and weasel mixed together and the tsuba examples above portray them fairly accurately. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_wolf

I’ve been saving up a half a year to fight for that crane tsuba Uwe ????. Hope it will be enough lol. Already bought this book. Can’t wait to see some higher res photos once it arrives. Btw, is this auction online or do I have to be there physically?

Yeah! That one on Darcy’s site reminds me a lot of this kozuka’s coiled dragon theme. Could actually be a Goto Ichijo piece and would make a great set together.

Thanks guys! yea I always survey those sites daily. There's always Mukansa swords out there but it's actually really difficult to find one sword with ALL these attributes: -Katana shape (so not a tachi) and -Bohi (horimono a big plus) and -Sword made after the becoming Mukansa (not 100% must but would prefer it) and -7k to 15k USD range. Strangely 3+ years ago it was pretty easy to find a sword with all these characteristics but now a lot harder.

Sorry, not just Moji but also Katachibori. Incredible design!

Thanks Pete. Very good analysis. Yea I agree, the mei is very good and extremely similar but perhaps just slightly more fluid than some Ichijo mei. Found out this piece was actually sent to Shinsa in the past and the result was Horyu. So I guess it still officially stands as a mystery.

Wow, that site has some very high-end blades and tosogu. The tosogu in their shop are incredible. If that blade had a bohi I would have bought it in a heartbeat.

Seems it was an internet issue. I can see it fine on my phone just not on company wifi. To me the mei of this kozuka looks shoshin, especially after seeing this example: But would be glad to have any other opinions.

Yep read that one a few times before. Actually it's what got me interested in Ichijo in the first place. However I think right now that page is down? I can't access it for the moment.

Not exactly the best source but I found those mei from this webpage: http://www.nihonto.us/GOTO%20ICHIJO%20FUTOKOROMONO.htm Additionally this one looks very much like the mei and it passed TH:

Here is an example of an authentic Ichijo mei on a Kozuka in the photo below. Frankly, to me the carving and strokes look the same and done with the same force and precession (though I’m still a novice). However this mei’s last character does seem to be entirely different than the one in this photo. Btw, does this double dragon Kozuka’s mei have a year or age of when it was made?

I saw this kozuka attributed to Goto Ichijo just searching Google and liked the pleasing double coiled dragon design on it. I'm quite new and an amateur but to my untrained eyes the quality of work, design and mei look like Ichijo. Perhaps any of the experts in the field could give their opinion on this kozuka? And also what does the design mean? it's the first time I've seen a black and gold dragon coiled up like this, is there some backstory to this type of theme? Any information or opinions is highly appreciated.

Hmmm I can’t find him or his thread.

Yea I’ve seen those for awhile. Really top examples of Mukansa work but out of my budget. I’m in the 7-15k usd range atm.

Looking to buy an art katana from a Mukansa Smith that meet these requirements: -Must have bohi OR horimono -Must be a katana -Preferably made AFTER they were titled Mukansa That’s pretty much it. If anyone is selling one please pm me.

I have a soft spot for Moji Tsuba. I think it takes great understanding of design & aesthetics to take calligraphy and transform it into a tasteful tsuba.