Bazza

Agreeing with Dale's expression of difficulty in assigning school or period to such a tsuba, to me the OP's tsuba is certainly real and likely quite old, but for all that it has a rudimentary, agricultural 'look' to it. I don't mean this to be critical, but rather to say it doesn't appear to have the 'finesse' of a 'school' piece. So, might I suggest it was made by a local (rural??) craftsman seriously intended to be a practical tsuba. I feel it fits the Hizen/Nagasaki connection. BaZZa - but what do I know...

With the 'reverse' takanoha yasurime and the niji mei certainly not any of the 'great' Shintou Nobuyoshi. BaZZa.

Regards, BaZZa.

Definitely not Showa. 'One-hand' nakago and longish blade suggests Muromachi. The near non-existent hamachi also suggests old with numerous polishes. From the photos the blade is redeemable, but whether the cost of a polish is worth it needs close in-hand inspection. BaZZa.

I'm sorry too Tomu san that it isn't yours. BaZZa.

Tom, I hope it is yours and you can show us the rest of the sword!!! BaZZa.

Bizen Toshimune is in Ono's GENDAI TOKO MEIKAN. Decades ago I used to have a sword made by him, though no special inscriptions, just signed and dated. BaZZa.

Peter - looking forward to the reveal. BaZZa.

BaZZa.

Brian, Thank you for this link. Within it is this link that I absolutely enjoyed. On that page there are other teppou links as well: BaZZa.

Hi Nigel, great to hear from you. No, not an Australian requirement, but that horror was inflicted on Victorian collectors in recent decades. I have seen a cased pair of flintlock pistols with late 20th century registration numbers stamped in them under the Victorian law of the time. Sadly (or rather happily!!), the law was later abandoned, but these verdampt numbers are there forever to show the lunacy of the sort of regulations the Victorian Government is capable of. Just ask Victorian sword collectors. The registration number stamped into the barrels of Japanese matchlocks was a requirement of the early Meiji Government. I've found a quick reference to the system in the pages of THE GUN COLLECTOR, September 1950. The two pictures below should answer the question without turning out a mini-essay. EDIT: I should add that the fuzzy numbers you can see on the lhs of the image are Japanese characters. Barry aka BaZZa.

Mark H wrote: >It would be damaging to the market if word were to get out that it's impossible to tell apart a > contemporary blade from a blade close to a millennia old. There would of course be a strong > financial incentive to keep this hidden (if it were the case). There may well also be the art challenge, as with all forgers, to fool the cognoscenti of the day. However, it was once the case in our time - I'll have to dig out the info. In my decades of accumulating club and society newsletters and inhabiting online discussion boards since 1996, there have been a couple of juicy tidbits on this very subject. One I remember was concerned with a sudden influx of (I think) Nara period swords that were about to be given high and important cultural object designations until "someone" opined that they were the work of a recently deceased swordsmith. A committee was formed to look into it. Now, a definition I remember of a committee is that it is a group of people who lure a good idea down a cul-de-sac and quietly strangle it!! On that point I cannot recall the conclusions of said committee, but maybe someone else remembers the details... A very interesting rabbit hole for this thread... BaZZa.

OTTOMH 2nd guess - Echizen no kami Minamoto Nobuyoshi

OTTOMH - naka kawachi no kami Kunisuke??

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step... Begin with the Board and the Search... feature and plug in tsuba. Just begin at the beginning and work through the topics and do remember that the Japanese sensei would spend a lifetime studying tsuba. One of my favorite 'sensitising' threads is here: I hope you enjoy your journey, may it be long and fruitful. BaZZa.

There is always the 'home test' that easily allows the calculation of specific gravity. If gold it will stand out like the proverbial... BaZZa.

This getting so far from the original topic that it is in danger of becoming a burlesque!!!! BaZZa.

Seeing iBot's Sakai teppo description of lotsa brass on a teppo I was reminded of these pictures of a teppo discovered by a mate in the 'deep country' here in Australia. There are 15 images I present for your delectation. Any comments will be welcome. No, the barrel was not removed as it was thought to be an 'imposition too far' on the elderly owner. BaZZa.

Gents, Here is my Namban tsuba that I put up on the Board many years ago (ca 2013?) and as it seems to fit into this discussion here it is again. This has an 'old green' NBTHK paper from one of the USA Shinsa many years ago. A visiting togishi from Japan held it one day, also many years ago, and said "A real one". BaZZa.

Volker, thanks. What is the nagasa of this sword?? And do you have a reading of the "order made" inscription, please?? BaZZa aka Barry Thomas.

This guard undoubtedly comes from a very cheaply made souvenir with carved/engraved bone koshirae bits. The sheet metal front and back with 'bracing bits' is THE cheapest form of tsuba making. I have a couple of such swords... BaZZa.

So, it appears to me with examples all around us, that belief is stubborn also and in many instances not at all malleable. Fact, on the other hand, is subject to the scientific method and there are many instances of fact stubbornly refusing to bow to truth by method... BaZZa.

Guess what I discovered under our noses???!!! From 2012 no less - a necro post of great value... I just popped this into google to find it Japanese imported arms meiji Japan Good hit. BaZZa.

This is VERY interesting. I have seen a VERY large teppou (3-wrap barrel and as heavy as an anchor) with a copper (??) sheet covering most of the barrel surface with a sennin riding a fish with waves splashing all around. I saw this well over 30 years ago. Sadly, it isn't mine and is a 'wet dream' I have had since the first moment I (just) held it in my hands. Sighhhhh. I still have an oshigata somewhere of the mei I find every once-in-a-while and this thread reminds to put it here whenever I next sight it. BaZZa.

Ian, your explanation for breaking of the fukigayeshi may well explain why they are broken off my HARUTA YOSHIHISA zunari kabuto. Knowing where my kabuto came from (an old estate) this helmet likely came to Australia as a souvenir during the Meiji period. Thanks. BaZZa.