Spartancrest

Piers could your example be Suruga? The Kuchibeni would fit. An example here with scroll sukashi pattern so not too far away from your design. Just a guess.

Don't use a metal umbrella in a thunderstorm.

That is very nice of you to say Roger - [here I was thinking I was just being annoying!] I found yet another namban based design. https://www.jauce.com/auction/q1015069655 These critters are starting to add up!

I found some of the early quotes about how the Japanese can make metal appear like molded clay. Japanese ART by Louis Gonse translated from French by M. P. Nickerson. (1891) SWORD MOUNTINGS. ----"I know certain sword-guards of Kinai's, which produce the impression of a work moulded in wax. I know some large lobsters, in open wrought iron, signed by Kinai, which are so life like and natural that one can hardly realize the difficulties overcome by the artist. The great difficulty is not in producing the open work, in the microscopic details of the model, whose fineness astonishes us, but in preserving, in a metal which can be wrought only slowly and by little strokes, the appearance of a sketch freely executed, and in attaining, by patient efforts, freedom and power in the result. One can, in thought, enlarge these lobsters. They are themselves of monumental proportions; but the appearance is so true to life that one sees them, as it were of natural size. It seems as if the artist had modeled them with his thumb in clay."- - The guard referred to is this one - not at all like your Shoami but yours could certainly be thought of as "molded in wax" from its appearance. "THE DECORATION of SWORDS and SWORD FURNITURE" by Edward Gilbertson, M.J.S. [Member of Japan Society] NOVEMBER 14 l894. - - "Not less striking is the way in which the surface has been varied and undulated, the edges shaped and the borders rolled, with their corners turned back, showing nevertheless no trace of the hammer. In some of these tsubas the curves obtained seem almost the result of rolling some soft metal with the hand." -- You might notice "tsubas" which is incorrect - tsuba is used both as singular and plural.

Well here is another guard - seems it sold fairly cheaply back in 2019 Kinai school. [mei looks weak] https://www.jeffreysevans.com/auction/Japanese-edo-period-kinai-school-iron-tsuba/

Well Bruno that just goes to show how eBay is the 'Don't Go To' for tsuba - they are charging twice the price you can buy it from Yahoo Japan, Buyee etc. The Buy it now price is $544.43 USD on Jauce not $1,287.13 !! https://www.jauce.com/auction/e1048605936 I firmly believe there is one price for people who buy direct from Japanese auction sites and Gaijin prices on eBay. Brian I think you are absolutely correct. All the bent angle guards can stay upright and not roll around. [not the first 'wave' example unfortunately] Handy if you are out and about without a Kake !

I am no expert on Saya but I do like the iron fittings on yours. Do you think the white circles are inlay of shell? I saw a similar effect on a knife handle where they used boar teeth in resin [not something you would expect to see] it turned out spectacular - on a "forged in fire" episode.

First guess would be Shoami - "style". Its not signed and a pretty conventional design based I think on Chinese landscape paintings. The ategane in the hitsu points to several mountings and the gold nunome edging lifts its quality a little. Please be aware the images should be the other way up with the narrow part of the nakago-ana pointing upwards [cutting edge] the way they would be seen when mounted. It is interesting you say the way it looks like it was molded in clay - that sentiment was held by many early European writers back in the 19th century and the skill of the tsuba maker is still inspiring that thought even today.

Well if you have the right koshirae - this is the Shachi tachi kake you need. https://www.jauce.com/auction/f1048239985

This seller has a variety of cheap boxes, you could do a bulk deal and save money even if you throw the inserts away. https://www.ebay.com.au/sch/i.html?_ssn=yumi3go55&store_name=mugendojapan&_dmd=2&_oac=1&_trksid=p2047675.m3561.l2562

Jean S. I found this auction piece from back in 24.06.2021, https://www.lempertz.com/en/catalogues/lot/1179-1/708-an-iron-tsuba-edo-period-early-19th-century.html it has several elements close to your piece.

Geraint, thanks yes I am looking for less obstructive means of holding the tsuba on, a nice small toggle with a loop would work. [as long as I don't loose the toggle.] Something like this with a groove in it might work - just need it to be as small as possible.

Thomas which CHURCH catalogue do you refer to? I take it you mean A. H. Church but which particular publication?

Taking a suggestion from Dan Derooy [well his wife really] I 'repurposed' an old Obi as a hanging scroll to display tsuba. The problem being how to attach tsuba to a fabric background without causing damage to the tsuba or puckering the fabric. Solution buttons. By using buttons that fit through the nakago-ana with enough thread to allow removal and a size that can retain the top of the nakago-ana it worked out fine. I had some Japanese fan buttons, flat and thin that served the purpose, but ideally a smaller button or toggle would work even better. My particular Obi was black with gold highlights which is not ideal for black tsuba display as they tend to disappear in the background but the lining was red so I folded and stitched the black over as a frame. I used oversized wooden knitting needles as rods, top and bottom, but these will be replaced with suitable dowels latter - it is a prototype and a work in progress. So if you need to display your guards in a different way give it a try.

A kagamishi guard here very much like yours - This one has wasps, some of which are hard to make out. https://tsubakansho.com/tag/cast/ You may be on the right track with squirrels but that hole in the middle is odd. The animal(?) may even be related to this thread.

Apparently there was a build your own 'tsuba' collection - bi-weekly in Japan. Looks like it only made it to 4 tsuba replicas- I wonder if the display boxes are still available? https://plaza.rakuten.co.jp/kazuw01/diary/202204040000/?scid=we_blg_pc_rank_user_2_img Issue one on Jauce [issue price was 799 yen] selling for 2,000 yen https://www.jauce.com/auction/x1047020812 I guess this means there are four more types of 'fakes' to avoid!

Jean-S. Yes the 'silver' one is a modern casting - well when I say modern it could go back to the 1950s Vintage casting? Curran is correct yours is the pick of the bunch.

Getting off the topic a bit but you might like this image from the Kyoto National Museum. [sorry the image is grainy]

No I would not worry too much, museum pieces generally don't get a lot of care. There may also be a lot of difference with the lighting of the images. The mokko shape of yours is a nice change. You would really need to worry if it looked like this. https://www.jauce.com/auction/m437707749

Similar designs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art - 91.1.819 and the Cleveland Museum of Art - 1919.539 Metropolitan has theirs as by : Masayoshi (正義), first name Sadashichi (定七), was an Edo-based artist active at the end of the 18th century who had studied with the Masakata (正方, ?-1774), the third master of the local Bushū-Itō (武州伊藤) School.

A large winged, version, a little worn but nice design. https://www.jauce.com/auction/w1046661844

But Thomas the omote does face the user - which would mean the 'prongs' face the blade. Just the same as the spear.

Perhaps it serves the same purpose as a boar spear? Stops the spear head going straight through? It is a curious find, thanks Bjorn.

I have an Ito guard where the fukurin was removed because it caused corrosion damage. Some metals just react badly. Jesse if you are looking for a joint seam it should, as a rule be at the bottom just under the nakago-ana, the nawame [rope] design on yours would help to disguise it.

Bjorn - What is it? It looks like someone has 'Steam-Punked' a spear! [OK. Yari]