Jump to content

Iekatsu

Members
  • Posts

    222
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    1

Everything posted by Iekatsu

  1. Iekatsu

    Hanbo

    Hello Grev, The Tare is likely not original and actually looks like it could be re-purposed lames from Gessan, it is unlikely that it was a period alteration.
  2. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but that is a reproduction and has nothing to do with the imperial family.
  3. There are some great fittings in this thread, three of mine that would be categorised as Kagami-shi.
  4. Dan, On a more positive note, your second Tsuba is ko-kinko, its in pretty rough shape, but not a bad example of the type.
  5. Ford, thanks for answering all my queries. To add to your extensive list: The Chinese were capable of smelting zinc in the middle late period of the Ming Dynasty. There are serval zinc smelting sites in Linjiangerdui that have been discovered, the earliest dates around 1410-1445AD, these sites are quite large, suggesting a reasonable industry/demand. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/298424496_Preliminary_study_on_zinc_smelting_relics_from_the_Linjiangerdui_site_in_Zhongxian_County_Chongqing_City_southwest_China In "Metallurgical Analysis of Chinese coins at the British museum" we can see the composition of Chinese coins spanning various dynasties, from No. 451 (1503-5) we see a distinct increase in the percentage of zinc in the coins and a decrease in lead and tin. Chinese coins are well established as a trade good with Japan during this period, the Ming Dynasty preferring silver and paper currency. https://www.britishmuseum.org/pdf/RP%20152%20Metall%20Analysis%20Chinese%20coins-Prelims-Appendix.pdf While official trade with china did cease around 1549, there was still a rich tapestry of unofficial trade in the period, that far outweighed the official trade missions. (recommended reading https://www.amazon.com/Across-Perilous-Sea-Sixteenth-Centuries/dp/1933947330) As you are aware, In 2015 a sword fitting casting workshop was unearthed in Yanagimachi, Nara, during the excavation they discovered evidence of brass casting, traces of zinc being found in crucibles, the site dates to the early Edo period. https://markussesko.com/2016/01/20/cast-sword-fittings/ Thomas
  6. I think it is pretty well established that the naming conventions for Tsuba are often dubious at best and modern categorization at worse. I look forward to seeing the results of your study, if I can ask what was the lowest concentration of zinc recorded from the samples? Also how did you set about determining the age of the items in the selected sample? I think this is a fair question given the large number of so called Onin, Heianjo and Yoshiro that were quite likely produced in the Edo period. Thomas
  7. Hello Ford, Thank you for summarizing the key points, do you know where the analysis carried out by V&A museum is published? Thomas
  8. Perhaps if you present your theory concerning Brass in pre-Edo Tsuba we can have an open discussion.
  9. This is the example that was published in the "Shin Kachu shi Meikan" and also in "Nihon Mei Kabuto".
  10. I agree with Marius I don't see ko-kinko, its in the rendering of the horses and the composition.
  11. The Tsuba would be better classified as Ko-Kinko but the above points still stand.
  12. An early Namban Tsuba from my collection, imported and then modified. The motif is items of the eight immortals and phoenix.
  13. I just wanted to say a big thank you to Mark for organising the meetup, I had a great time and look forward to the next.
  14. Sunday November 4th at 2:00pm sounds good to me, it would be great to meet some other members.
  15. Perhaps we could organize some kind of Melbourne meetup to see the display?
  16. One of my recent acquisitions, A Ko-Kinko Tsuba that I think perfectly embodies wabi-sabi.
  17. Iekatsu

    Kantei 2

    You have a beautiful collection Grev, thanks for sharing. Of all the soft metal Tsuba T180 is the only one could be labeled as Tachi Kanagu-shi, there is no evidence of Hitsu-ana and the elongated Nakago-ana is another good sign.
  18. Iekatsu

    Kantei 2

    Shinsa panels are only human and mistakes happen. There is no evidence that the above Tsuba was mounted on a Tachi, the fact that it has an original Ana contradicts the attribution. It was clearly made for mounting on an Uchigatana. None of this detracts from Tsuba itself which is a nice example of its type. Both ko-Kinkō and Tachi Kanagu-shi are broad (modern) categories and encompass many styles and periods, this is why papering early soft metal Tosogu is problematic at best.
  19. Iekatsu

    Kantei 2

    Ko-Kinko, late Muromachi, original ana.
  20. Paulownia mon are commonly associated with the Toyotomi, but it predates them.
  21. I agree, Ko-Kinko, these tsuba appear to have been mass produced during the late Muromachi-Momoyama period. There a quite a few examples out there, generally they are made of Yamagane, Mokko gata in shape and are stamped with chrysanthemums and/or various other floral motifs. They tended to be lacquered black, remnants of lacquer visible on both the examples above. Good examples of the style.
×
×
  • Create New...