Spartancrest

The subject has been well covered in the past but good to see renewed interest. https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/34262-edo-period-christian-themed-tsuba/ https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/19732-new-article-about-christian-tsuba/ https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/45516-help-with-christian-tsuba/ Still scratching my head to see this series of guards as "Christian"? https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/13261-beautiful-christian-tsuba/ Secret compartment tsuba with Christian symbol hidden within - just don't rattle the sword!

I drop the two images of a fantastic habaki over from https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/49606-collecting-tsuba-seems-addictive-how-many-do-you-have-on-how-many-years/page/2/#comments Dated 8/20/2024 [or as we non Americans would write 20/8/2024] The habaki is a part of koshirae which comes with two opinions: 1. By "all-American old school shinsa of tsuba and tosogu": in suite mainline Goto, too unusual to be more specific, custom order. 2. By an "honorary Russian shinsa of crafts and blades": a combinations of pieces, all by different Goto makers. Only one piece he identified as early mainline Goto, the rest in his opinion are three (!) different generations of lesser skill.

Daikon theme- they can be represented as long and slender or short and round this one in the MFA Boston https://collections.mfa.org/objects/11846 Metropolitan museum of art https://www.metmuseu...lection/search/34367 https://www.bonhams....ctions/16021/lot/77/ Is this your example? https://ginza.choshu..._3350/3334/k3334.htm "Kabu ni Hamaguri" (Turnip and Clams) The copper base is carved into a beveled corner and finished with a leather-like grain, and the tsuba features highly engraved turnips and clams. These two themes, which are in season in spring, are incredibly refreshing. The turnip, shining white with silver painting, is depicted realistically, and the large, spreading turnip leaves are expressed in minute detail. The back features a depiction of flowing clouds and flowing water with clams.

A bargain basement Hirata - not an odawara fukurin [as the seller claims] but a nawame one, https://www.jauce.com/auction/f1149144492 I honestly don't think it will sell very cheaply but I don't see any papers with it - make of that what you will.

https://www.christie...n/en/lot/lot-5047098 http://www.ncjsc.org...iya_nagatsune_fk.htm same artist? not sure.

plenty of cats here:

Great collection in my opinion. I spotted your interesting habaki I think Bruce Pennington would love to see a bigger image over on this thread Kirill?

This is a little off subject - but why tamper with existing "Art"? Lowering the background then rough punch marks [You might have thought they were drill marks] - Why do this? Looks like they didn't like the results and gave up - - too late! ?

A ducky little dish: https://www.jauce.com/auction/k1148885939

They just need a bigger hammer! This one would make no difference even if you did want to rotate it. Could the original example have been something else to start with? An Obidome for instance?

Might be easier for people to visualise with an image.

Not a 90 degree turn like Justyn's but there must be a few with a 180? From the François Poncetton Collection sale of June 12th 1929 86. Tsuba in Iron, round, silver damascened: 106 mm x 106 mm. Horse lying down. Kano painting style. Workshops of damasceners in the province of Hizen. 17th century. From the Henri L. Joly sale, 1921, n° 45. Reproduced in Japanese Sword Guards, by M.F.P., pl. XXXIX n° 140. Pierre Barboutau collection 1903 no. 981

That guard appeared in a thread: see date June 25th 2022

Sri Lankan hair pins https://www.metmuseu...lection/search/90207

https://nihonto.com/8-8-19-2/ Very deep pockets !

It is a rabbit! They really like the long ears

Disconcertingly familiar:

Far better example than this ebay one : Not near the same quality though as this Meiji?: https://www.sellinga...ted-chinese-scholar/ I think you paid top end price, was it a "Buy it Now" or an open auction? Sometimes an open auction can relist at a lower price second time through - just depends how seriously you want to take the risk of a late minute bid by someone else. It will look much better if you can clean some tarnish off the face but probably not worth the risk. I don't mind it at all. If it is 'modern' it is very well done and has not come out of China! JMHO

The only true test would be to put it up for auction - Then withdraw the auction - Dealers do this all the time, however it is not to their credit IMHO What is "true value" anyway? https://www.jauce.com/auction/u1147253154 or the full set of fakes? https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/315138979734 or get it direct from the manufacturer https://teraasekesku...aijin-tsuba/?lang=en True "Worth" much less than the postage. [Yes I know these are fakes, it is only an example] Value like beauty is all in the eye of the beholder I think - Dealers will have a different slant I am sure.

132,001 yen and pulled at the last minute!

I am trying to taper off - trying to specialise only on Kawari-gata now - I can't go completely cold turkey! PS. A.H. Church was a liar, he had over 1,286 that he left to the Ashmolean Museum alone!

So in my understanding does it mean that a sword can be mounted even without sekigane - assuming the size is right and if the nakao ana is punched so it sits tight? Sorry for stupid questions :-) Best wishes, Lukas A tsuba can be mounted without sekigane and without tagane-ato if it was made for a specific sword. Tsuba could also be purchased with ready made nakago-ana and then adjusted to fit a blade either with sekigane or punched if the hole was too large, to stop any movement of the guard. There is also a group of makers who cut the top and bottom of the nakago-ana and put in what are called kuchibeni ["lipstick" or more accurately "Red mouth opening"] Suruga school for example. These were designed to hold sekigane in a horseshoe shape top and bottom. Sometimes these can be found with just the cut holes and the sekigane either removed or never put in. This [Suruga school] has kuchibeni and an added sekigane at the bottom Then there are others where a filler has been made that covers the whole nakago-ana if for instance too much metal has been removed. Sekigane could be a research project just on their own!

I will stick my neck out and say they are too good for 'fakes' - they look very pristine so they haven't been out of their box very much and likely Kenjō presentation tsuba.

Guilty of having around 300 - please make me stop! Not so many when you spread it over forty years! Nothing compared to some early collectors like A.H. Church

One very similar in the Bristol Museums collection. https://collections....731/?s%3DN6852&pos=1 They have some confusion between "Butterfly wings" and "Abalone shells" [I have taken the liberty of lightening the images]