Soshin

Thank you Ciro Foschi for starting this topic. I have been a long-time collector of Owari tsuba with a specific focus on openwork (sukashi 透かし). Both me and Curran and have a history of liking some of the same things. From the single poor-quality photo (been clicking on it and cannot see any more detail) I am not really seeing any of the characteristic iron seen in many tsuba from the Owari/Mikawa Provinces (Edo Period or otherwise). To provide more context the Japanese term this type of special very dense and well forged (subjective assessment) iron that I have come across in my studies is (Owari-jigane 尾張地金). The visible texture and feel of this type of iron has been burned so to speak into my memory and I long to have more examples of it in my personal collection.

Hello Jeremiah L. Nice kozuka! I love the expressiveness and detail of the face. Thanks for sharing.

Hello John, I generally do not reply and refence something I am selling on the general discussion form, but I think it would be helpful and informative to the members of NMB. I have a Shinto Era Osafune Sukesada wakizashi that is signed and dated with NBTHK Hozon papers up on my business website for sale here: Antique Japanese Short Sword (Wakizashi) by Sukesada | Rain Dragon Fine Art (raindragonfineartandantiques.com). Comparing your sword to my sword art polish or not I would need to agree with Hamfish, Stephen, and others assessment.

Hello Anders, Thanks for posting this topic and asking this question. I am a long time member of NMB since 2009. I think I was reading posts on the website as early as 2006 before Brian was Administrator but I was not registered as a user. I completely agree with Brian statement. For all sales I go through my business as it has an established set of best practices outlined on the Terms and Conditions and the Shipping and Returns webpages. You can check it out here: Terms and Conditions and here: Shipping and Returns. Feel free to private message me if you have any specific questions.

Hello Gary, From the one photo I really cannot tell. Can you post a photo of the backside of the menuki?

I would say Shoami School circa the early to mid Edo Period agreeing with Florian statement above. The marks at 8:00 is likely just serious corrosion of the plate. It hard to get a feel for the real age of the tsuba from your photos as the focus is a bit to soft and not uniform across the plate of the tsuba.

Hi Mark Ceskavich, Nice Akasaka tsuba. Sorry no clue what the openwork design is. Thanks for sharing.

Sold number of Japanese sword fittings and one sword at the show. It was really fun. I cannot wait until next year. Here is a photo I did with my iPhone while at the show on Sunday before I started to packing up the table.

Hello Dan C., Safe travels looking forward to meeting you on Saturday at the Orlando Show.

Ron M., I really cannot see the necessary critical details of the design and the workmanship or even the surface texture of the kozuka to be sure of anything. The base might be a dark patinaed iron. Can you post better photos (more even lighting and crisper focus)? Check out my website links below in my signature of examples of good Japanese sword fittings photography. Or you can check with a small magnet that the base of the kozuka is iron?

Hello Dale, The NBTHK main office at the Japanese Sword Museum in Tokyo, Japan (The Japanese Sword Museum (touken.or.jp)) has a registry of the NBTHK certificate numbers. What information is recorded in the registry and how helpful it would be to study I am not sure because I only had limited use of it myself over the years. I have been a member of the NBTHK since 2007.

Just sent in my reservations last week for the NTHK shinsa. Looking forward to the show and the shinsa. Thanks Tom for your efforts to set up the shinsa this year and passed years.

Here is a picture of me setting up my two tables I had at the show on Friday morning. Tony Smith another table exhibitor is in the near background. The photo was taken by my table neighbor at the show with his iPhone. It was a really great show. Thank you again Mark Jones for putting together such a nice show.

Donation made to help Natalya and young David via the Go Fund Me webpage. Very sad.

Hi Everyone, I had a great show. Thank you very much Mark Jones for putting on such a great Chicago show. I cannot wait until next year. I was able to transport this big book I purchased from Grey Doffin without problem. I need it for the study of a new katana in my collection. I will post photos later.

I will be there with a table. Thanks for the notice and travel safe.

I am very much looking for to attending the 2021 Chicago Area Japanese Collectibles and Sword Show and will have a full display table. Mark Jones, thank you very much for your efforts in promoting the show during this difficult pandemic. Mark S. looking forward to meeting you and other members of NMB in person at the show.

Hi Adam, Thank you for highlight on the photo with what you are talking about specifically. I really cannot tell for sure what the caused this without examining the tsuba at all angles under good lighting while in hand. It might be due a major subsurface inclusion in the metal of the tsuba or some type of damage to inside surface of the openwork but that is all just speculation on my part without examining it in hand.

Hello Adam, Thanks for sharing the additional photo. The tsuba has the characteristic squared or rounded-square rim common to Heianjō-zōgan tsuba. The inlays are clearly laid above the surface of the plate and not flushed to the surface. Based upon these characteristics it is a Edo Period Heianjō-zōgan tsuba likely made during the early to mid-part of the historical period. All the work on this tsuba would have been done by hand therefore it does not appear to be as perfect as it would have been done by machining in modern times. The openwork design would have been cut using tempered steel saws and would have then been finished by filing the inside surfaces of the openwork design.

I like Curran haven't heard anything from him lately. I remember purchasing tsuba and other things from him at shows. I have never purchased anything off of the Rice Cracker website but would visit it and I have it bookmarked. I check the website and looks to be running just fine on my computer. I would use it to try and contact him.

I once had a really nice set of small family crest (kamon 家紋) themed menuki that were unsigned but attributed to the Yoshioka School by the NBTHK. This (fuchi-gahsira 縁頭) set is really nice and is typical of the school's work during the Edo Period.

Not much of a Japanese military sword collector, but as a dealer I get a lot offers from people wanting me to purchase remarkably similar modern fakes. They are likely made in mainland China as copies of low-quality World War 2 swords mostly made for noncommissioned officers. The signature on these swords is always poorly written and does not make sense from a Japanese language perspective.

Hello Adam, Your Heianjō-zōgan tsuba looks genuinely nice. Thank you for sharing it. I currently have a couple in my personal collection as well that I think run a wide range of ages. As for determining age of your tsuba I would need to have more photos of your tsuba at different angles showing the rim and allowing for a more detailed examination of the brass inlays and how they are applied to surface of the tsuba.

Hello Robert, Coming back to this late because I have been busy with other more pressing matters. I can confirm as others have said there is no information on the appraisal paper about Masayoshi being part of an any organized School or less organized group of artists for that matter. This may imply that Masayoshi was an independent artist. There were many of these type of artists during the Edo Period. The NBTHK paper just discusses the design, techniques used, the signature, and that the tsuba is authentic and worthy of preservation. Examining examples of the Aizu Shōami School and reading the one book I know of about that school’s work I do not think your tsuba was produced by this School, but the school's work is remarkably diverse, and it might be a possibility.

Hello Mark, I was thinking Uda School based upon the hamon but I had a papered Uda Kunimune tantō that didn't have such course ji-hada like your tantō does and overall it was healthier and looked more refined. This is the extent of my limited knowledge and a mostly a Japanese fittings collector.