Bugyotsuji

Och, what an idiot am I. In the process of playing with the sliding latches to remove the rust and discover how they locked, it became apparent that the tangs hit each other. ??? But that was the way I bought it yesterday! Now I have just discovered that there are inserts in the uprights to receive the tangs. Duh...

The following 'No-bento' (?) evokes the Edo Period to me. The iron reinforced carrying handles with square holes show where a pole was pushed through for carrying, e.g. on the Sankin Kotai trip to and from Edo. Perhaps it should be more gorgeously decorated with Kamon etc., but its very dark simplicity called me to it. Despite some damage, it is in generally good condition with all the main bits still extant. The large sake box has a spout hole in the top corner. Black lacquered wood and iron. Pics. Exploded and unexploded, with closeups of the sliding locks.

What do I want for my birthday? Moriyama san and Morita san often provide detailed readings here of difficult Mei. Each one is a labor/labour of love, a treasure in itself and an instruction for the members. I wonder how many of these are dotted around this site? Would it not be fantastic to have them all together in one thread, or even a list of links if the photo load is a problem? Something along the lines of: "Unlocking Baffling Mei" - Illustrated Examples from the In-House Experts To rescue these and collect/collate them in one place would be a lot of work for someone to do, (I am not putting myself forward), but might there anyone out there with free time for such a project? If not, then back to my dreaming... PS Most of the above explications will be concentrated in the Translation section, I guess. PPS Should this have been in the Izakaya, I wonder?

Thanks for the detailed fill-in!

Thank you Thomas for your considered reply. I will post a crystal clear, super close-up shot this evening! (Crescents crossed... :lol: )

Many thanks for the thoughtful replies. I have a shoami katana tsuba with about 20+ nicks all concentrated to one side of the cutting edge. They are at various gentle angles and depths and widths, but in one area the cuts are so close that the mimi begins to look like the serrated edge of certain coins. Perhaps it had to do with the fashionable techniques of the time, yes, but also with the peculiar combination of two opponents in one particular fight, rather than any general rule? If so, the anywhere theory sounds good. This got me thinking about the material of a tsuba. Presumably one consideration would be how the metal receives a cutting edge. To some extent it would need to be just soft enough to absorb a blow and slow down the opponent's sword. (?)

Where might we expect to find most (sword?) notches/nicks on the mimi of a tsuba, and why?

Back on pp.90-91 of this thread, John was guessing who might have made a Chigo-zashi boy's sword. Below was his guess, and at the time I made no particular comment. (The Mei itself reads Amahide.) Well, I showed it to someone who is more an expert in Kodogu, and I was talking to him again today and his opinion is that the blade being Masame in character, and the whole of the Koshirae is to him typical of Shinshinto Mino, specifically Jumyo. 寿命　 So your answer may have been a whole lot closer than I gave you credit for. viewtopic.php?f=9&t=2554&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=1335 Apologies if this is a part repost, but credit needs to be given where credit is due!

Looking at the various shapes of the seppa-dai, I wonder if the seppa were also specially shaped...?

Well, this is one other area I know nothing about, but may I just say that if it really is what it looks like, then someone has given you a wonderful present!

Thanks for the background. Wonderful story. PS Forgot to mention that the iron helmet has Yotsu-wari-bishi, (Takeda-bishi) Kamon on the fukukaeshi. In case anyone is interested, the trick to get all the plates to join together at the top of the helmet is said to have been quite a prodigious exercise. Chopping them off (like the top of a boiled egg) and inserting a Hachimanza was an easier way to get a neat-looking finish.

Just found out that what I was calling Uchidashi (hammered out work) above on the Mabisashi is exactly that, but that parｔicular shape is called Sasa-mayu, or embossed Bamboo-leaf eyebrows. P 334 Sasama's Nihon no Kachu Bugu Jiten (Thanks to Ian for relighting my boiler.)

Just sold one very similar to that to finance the follow-up! The Wakidate are a nice feature. Congratulations. By the way, I don't think you can say it is missing the Maedate as they were very much interchangeable. Most would-be Samurai that I come across are very vain when it comes to decorating their armour... and they love to swap and change constantly. Just build up a collection to match any occasion!

Ian, thank you for your reply. I was waiting and hoping you were lurking here somewhere. The phone rang today and I was told firmly that the correct word is Namban. Now this is a person that I cannot contradict openly. A friend of his (and through him, mine, but indirectly) is one of the top appraisers of kabuto and Menpo in Japan, and has a fabulous collection. I suspected that this information may have come from him, so I just accepted it as passed along. Big mistake, possibly. Thanks for the heads-up. (I noticed Sasama's book on his shelf when I visited his office a few months ago. He also liked the lacquered one, like No.1 on p. 220 but no Hachimanza, so I am wondering if they were trying to get me to swap, not expecting me to buy both.) I will definitely mention that Sasama calls them toppai... which reminds me, I just bought that book second-hand recently! Jet lag does wonders to the brain. Let's have a look... hmmm... I see what you mean. Anyway, the iron one (cf No. 15), seems to hit the spot with Japanese people as there was a bit of a competition to get it, and people offered me all kinds of congratulations. Tetsu-sabi-ji seems to be popular here, as is Uchidashi. (Well, these features add to the price.) PS You were referring to the Hit-tou-nari Kabuto (writing brush) and not the Momo-nari, right? PPS No.9 is a Kaki-nari (persimmon) shape, also quite similar. Many thanks again for your advice. I will go back and re-edit, fiendishly cleverly as always... :lol:

Koichi sama, what about the second meaning in your dictionary? 道心堅固な僧を敬っていう語。 In other words, an expression praising a monk who is steadfast in the way (of Buddha). Or, http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/leaf/jn2/133268/m0u/ 悟りを求める心を起こした人。道心堅固な僧。"Someone who has set his heart to realize enlightenment".

Thank you Leonard. Small, but I like it! I would be interested to know more about it too.

Mmmm... some of the above very nice. I particularly like Ian C's first 'soapstone' copper one for the delicate tracery.

Quick note of apology. In the posts above, and previously, I have referred to these helmets as 'Toppai' (pointed top) or 'Donguri' (acorn). While the expression 'Donguri' exists, a close friend has recently insisted they be called 'Namban Kabuto' They are comparatively rare, he assures me. Possibly true Namban are. The Tetsu-sabi-ji above is especially interesting for the eyebrows Uchidashi in the Mabisashi. Toppai (sounds like 'Top Pie' as in Apple 'Pie') Kabuto... !

Can you get another shot of it from the front, and the right side up?

Congratulations. Ben fatto. It looks very good!

Bought this one and only some years ago, but having seen the examples above, am now wishing I had studied a little more first.

Strange. Markus said this summer for the English version, but ...maybe it is out already? It certainly looks good!

Here come the promised pics. Trying out two different Maedate. One, a Hachisuka Kamon mirror with a 13c date on it... http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%9C%82% ... 0%E6%B0%8F And the other, the Ki 木 Kamon of... 高木氏（源氏）、木村氏（源氏）、木内氏（藤原）、鈴木氏(藤原）、青木氏（丹治）と多くの武家が使用しています。 ...according to this blog: http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/xcfmh521/58136814.html Hatamoto Kuroiwa-shi (but no cross pieces...?) cf http://www.finesword.co.jp/sale/kodougu ... /k1310.htm

This thread is a little like the 1001 Nights, where the young wife had to come up with a new story every night to save her own neck. (Kabuto naming since edited) The Maedate above was well received and was even photographed for the SamuraiBaka blog. People thought I should not have polished it, though. After the photos above I polished it again until it shone so brightly that people had to turn their faces away. It looks great, and that is how it must have looked when new. (Shades of Himiko firing the sun at her opponents from the mirror on her helmet?) The back of the Maedate is still untouched, however, bent and dark and deep with lovely jubbly patina. The pointed 'toppai' Kabuto I am rather fond of, but when a Tetsu-sabi-ji Toppai/Namban came up over the weekend I just had to have it. So, following some sacrifice of other beautiful things I am now the proud owner of not one but TWO pointy Kabuto, one in lacquer and one in iron. PS Photos may follow at some point...

Quick 'final' follow-up on this tsuba. I showed it to a respected Tsuba collector yesterday and when I mentioned the opinions on this site concerning Choshu/ Echizen Kinai his eyes lit up and he smiled. 'Yes', he said, 'particularly Echizen'... and then he added 'Mid Edo'. PS. There is a wonderful display of Tsuba and Koshirae from private collections on the 3rd floor of Okayama Castle this month. On the second floor are perhaps 20 exceptional swords. http://www.city.okayama.jp/kankou/img/s ... etuten.pdf