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uwe

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Everything posted by uwe

  1. Welcome Moni! It reads “肥後守國康” (Higo no Kami Kuniyasu), I think.
  2. Very nice, congratulations, Colin 👍 I have looked him up in the “stirrup book” but couldn’t find an entry. Determining the age is a bit tricky, because such abumi were made over a longer time span, without changing the shape significantly…
  3. It’s “金沢住倫由作” (Kanazawa jū Tomoyoshi saku). Though the name can also be read as Michiyoshi….
  4. It’s written “無名-肥前” (mumei, attributed to Hizen).
  5. Proper gut feeling, Piers 👍 Santiago, if you looking for a real Edo period menpō, omit this!
  6. The red question mark after the period might read “年間” (nenkan), I guess.
  7. Another little correction: “Chōshū Hagi no jū Tomohisa kore o saku”.
  8. It’s dated 1853 嘉永六癸丑年十月?九日. The other inscription is probably a cutting test by a certain Yamada tester. First glance 山田源蔵吉武之試….but I’m in a hurry and have to leave…(not sure about the 武)….
  9. Yes, both are replicas probably made sometime in the 20th century. Even though they looking like Samurai helmets (kabuto 兜), they have not much to do with the “real thing”. The question is, why do you want to buy one of these helmets? Only for optical reasons, to display something “cool” which not everyone has? So why not….I assume both are not very expensive. On the other hand, there are real kabuto out there that don’t cost a fortune and you get a piece of Japanese history for your cabinet with patina and charm…
  10. uwe

    Edo style armor set

    Hello Den, it’s a “revival set”. Unfortunately the pictures are a bit too blurry, so it’s hard so see the details. I suspect late Edo/ Meiji at best, but may also be Taishō or later… Sorry we need better pictures to be more precise!
  11. For example: https://nihonto.com/7-11-14/
  12. I see. In this case, however, it’s signed with “加” instead of “賀”. So nothing is missing!
  13. What do you mean with “missing kanji at the top”, Darrel?
  14. Yes Luc, Kanto might fit!
  15. Hi Jonas, as mentioned above, unfortunately I’m not aware of such type or style. It might be a generic term, like for example Kaga-bō, Etchū-bō or Nara-bō, but I’ve never heard of that (as far as I can remember)…
  16. As John said above, it’s a decent menpō which seemingly dates back to the (later) Edo period. I admit that I can’t comment about the “Sendai characteristics”, since I actually don’t know “Sendai-masks” as such. The lacing, uhm….frankly spoken, the lacing is not well made, and not just in terms of color!
  17. Thanks, Andy! Unfortunately I’m not on insta, but the Iwai were widely known for their fine leather work, indeed….
  18. Thanks for your kind words, Bob! You can pm me what you have imagined the price to be if you are unsure... Greetings to my namesake! Uwe
  19. Hello Bob, hmm, after rereading my comments I’ve to admit that they’re a tad too technical, indeed…. To sum up the above, I dare say that it seems a matching set (only suneate missing) that can be placed in the proximity of the Hosokawa family, worn by them or their retainers. Although this type might be later adopted by other families, the creating of the basic model goes back to Hosokawa Sansai (or Tadaoki, 1563-1646). As you said, the whole is worth a restoration. It is in quite acceptable condition so a “touch up” wouldn’t cost a fortune. The problem is, that there are very few professional restorers outside of Japan. I actually only know two, here in Europe! Unfortunately, my very limited space (tiny house) is already occupied by armors and helmets. Already too much in the eyes of my beloved wife (😢)….. Cheers Uwe
  20. Now to the last piece of the set. As mentioned above, it is a yokohagi nimai-dô, i.e. a two-part cuirass in which the lamellae are arranged horizontally. Judging by the pictures, the armor plates are made of hardened leather (nerikawa), except the side plates under the armpits (wakiita) and the respective upper plates (munaita/oshitsuke no ita). These are probably made of iron. Unfortunately, I can't see if they're covered in leather or only coated with urushi. The lacing is also made of leather (here, e-gawa) and shows two different patterns (perhaps a restoration/repair?). On the shoulder bridges (watagami) is an unarmored collar (eri-mawashi) attached, in which the same carrier fabric (ieji) as on the "nigu" was used. There is still a lot to be said about the special features of the construction, but I think that would lead too far... Here's a comparison to the armor type I was reffering to in my initial post:
  21. I haven't been on that point yet, Barry.... This trimming is called "ue-kuma-ge" (kuma = bear) and in this case it's on the kusazuri not on the haidate
  22. Well, let's start... The helmet is an Etchû zunari-kabuto. It's distinctive shape is typical for the Hosokawa clan. Also the hanpô, an Etchû-bô, fits with that. Attached to this type of zunari-kabuto is usually a shikoro without fukigaeshi, at which the lames are covered in thin leather (a technic called kawa-tsuzumi). Aditionally is the lowermost lame edged with a narrow leather band (kawa-fukurin). As evident in your case! I will continue with sangu and dô later on... Ok, the sangu. The sangu consists of sleeves (kote), thigh protection (haidate) and shin protection (suneate). Since the latter is probably missing, one would have to speak of nigu here. Regardless, due to the style, kote, like haidate, can also be categorized as Etchû. In addition, all parts have the same base fabric (ieji) and thus forming an original set that belongs together. So far so good, the cuirass, a Yokohagi nimai-dô, is a bit strange and needs more detailed considerations....tomorrow...
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