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Soshin

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  1. Soshin

    Tanuki Tsuba

    Soshin replied to rematron's topic in Tosogu

    Thanks for sharing. I agree with @rematron. I think the flower is likely ominaeshi. Its association with autumn is an important one given the overall theme of the tsuba.
  2. Soshin
    Well technically he wrote three books. One book covers the Hayashi and Kamiyoshi Schools, another book is for the Nishigaki School, and third book covers the Shimizu and Hirata Schools. So happy you were able to meet Itoh-sensei and see his display at the San Francisco show this year. I can imagine how great the display was in person, and the few photos I have seen of the display looked awesome. I am also glad you had such a fun time at the San Francisco show.
  3. Soshin
    Just wanted to share some photos of my new tsuba stand that arrived yesterday. It is the black cradle version. I purchased it from Darren Harvey from the UK for my birthday. I have not tried all my tsuba on it, but I really like the stand. It is great for showing the iron bones of my Owari Sukashi tsuba. Feel free to discuss it politely. Thank you.
  4. Soshin
    This was fairly common. Sword smith's working period would extend across historical eras sometimes even when there were functional changes to the swords because the style of warfare had changed.
  5. Soshin
    The papered says in brackets below no signature (mumei 無銘): Uda Kunifusa (宇多國房) it does not say Ko-Uda (古宇多). The sentence afterwards talks about the end of the Nanbochokô Period: (Jidai 時代) Nanbochukô-makki 南北朝末期), (naishi 乃至) (means "to about") the (Ôei 応永) era. The sentences in brackets are offering who they think made the sword and the approximate time period it was made. I hope this is helpful. I like Uda and Ko-Uda swords. If it were my sword, I would plan to keep it and try for the Tokubetsu Hozon paper from the NBTHK.
  6. Soshin
    Hi Brian, I just sent a late PayPal donation so you can get coffee at the San Francisco Japanese Sword Show via you signature link. I cannot attend the show this year. Say hello to Ito-sensei for me. He is attending for his business gallery陽々youyou. Have a great show and thank you for all your efforts over the years.
  7. Soshin
    Thanks for the replies. I found this nice Shinshinto Nanotane tanto with koshirae on Ginza Choshuya website (日本刀販売・買取専門店銀座長州屋｜短刀　銘　荘司筑前直胤（花押） 文政十年仲秋 (choshuya.co.jp)). I really like the contrast with polished back lacquer saya and the lighter shibuichi kojiri. Here is a tanto by Shinshinto Munetsugu from Ginza Choshuya. This is a plain saya example: (日本刀販売・買取専門店銀座長州屋｜短刀　銘　宗継(宮川筑前守宗継) (choshuya.co.jp)).
  8. Soshin
    Quick question beyond a tsuba do I need any other fitting to complete my planned tanto koshirae? Has anyone ever seen a kojiri on a tanto saya? i think I have only seen them on katana and wakizashi saya. Thanks for the information. This discussion as been helpful.
  9. Soshin
    Thanks for the information. I remember being told this and it would make sense to have a motif with a tiger in the menuki. @David Flynn while the focus of this topic is not the translation or authentication of signatures on the sword or its fittings. I will provide a small side by side view of the nakago of the tanto per your request. I was able to translate the date of the nakago with help.
  10. Soshin
    It is a Shishi, Lion-dog, or a Korean Lion. Right now, I'm not sure how the tiger in bamboo motif of the menuki related to the Oni-Shoki motif of the fuchi-gashira set. A previous owner might have just liked menuki and had them mounted. The workmanship of the menuki from what I can see is good and consistent with the fuchi-gashira set.
  11. Soshin
    I would want the tantō tsuba to keep with the Shōki (Demon Queller) theme. The tiger in bamboo motif of the menuki relates to this theme as Shōki is sometimes pictured in art riding a tiger. An example is below. Here is my triangle diagram as a scanned drawing. I measured them on the tanto using a set of calipers, so I think they are reasonably accurate. I measured the nakago just below the silver foil habaki. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns. Thanks for the help.
  12. Soshin
    I have this small Shin-Shinto tanto I was planning to have a koshirae assembled for it. Here are some photos of the tanto in shirasaya and the handle (tsuka). I picked up this handle today as a birthday gift. I took these photos with my iPhone. I am looking for a tanto sized tsuba that will keep with or be appropriate for the theme of the handle. The menuki are of a tiger in bamboo. I think it would take me some time to find a good matching tanto tsuba. I am not in a big hurry anyways as I just purchased the tsuka.. Feel free to ask questions and discuss politely.
  13. Soshin
    I just read this The Japan Times article (Resurrecting a prince's home with a dark wartime past | The Japan Times) about the home of the war time PM Fumimaro Konoe that they are restoring. It is a nice read.
  14. Soshin
    Hi Brian, Nice tsuba. Looks like your tsuba is a work of a later generation (kōdai 後代) of the Akasaka (赤坂) School. Thanks, @Curran, for spotting the mei "Tadatoki-saku (忠時作)" I was able to see the first Kanji and the third Kanji only from the photos but was not able to put it togehter. There were many generations of Tadatoki in the school and some worked into the school's later working period when the school focused on copying Higo designs and other popular designs of the late Edo Period.
  15. Soshin
    @Brian I agree with the NBTHK on Edo Higo or Kumagai Call on both tsuba. I have seen some fully signed Kumagai tsuba that I really loved but that sold very quick in Japan. This was a few years ago on a dealer's website. I have one example in my collection that is without a paper.
  16. Soshin
    Mark, Thanks for sharing photos. It looks like a fun show. I am planning to attend next year.
  17. Soshin
    I really like the white ito wrap on your tanto handle. It is nice. I would agree with the Kyo-Kinko call but would also like to add the possibility of Kyo-Kanagushi as the maker of the fittings of tanto koshirae. I have had some nice oversized Kyo-Kanagushi menuki before so your large menuki could have also been made by that group of artists. I am trying to put together a koshirae for my Shinshinto Era tanto currently in shira-saya. I hope to get the handle for the koshirae for my birthday it also has white ito just like yours.
  18. Soshin
    Okay, not projection then it its generalization by citing a few examples. This is meant as a joke and not disrespect, but I am intellectually curious how common this approach was historically when it came to Japanese sword and sword fittings artists working in their active periods.
  19. Soshin
    That is one possibility, but you might also be projecting your own idea and emotions about the art you create as a hobby on a professional artist (that is what they did day in and day out) that lived many 100s of years ago in premodern or medieval Japan. There is also a cultural dynamic you might be missing as well. For example, swords made as offering at Shinto Shrines and Buddhist Temple generally speaking never being singed out of respect to the Kami or buddhas. Ultimately, we do not know for sure why some great works are never signed.
  20. Soshin

    Tsuba Stand New Version

    Soshin replied to DFX's topic in Tosogu

    This was what I was thinking of in terms of a plain black stand. It looks nice without any carvings. I will send you an email.
  21. Soshin
    Thanks for the comment. You have a nice sword from what I can see from the photos you provided. I'm not sure who made your sword, but I would say that it is likely part of the Mino Tradition like my sword is. The hamon (刃文) style looks more like a style or variation of straight (suguha 直刃) not in the Kanemoto School style like @Mark S. sword is. Did the later generations of the Kanemoto do other styles of hamon besides sanbonsugi (三本杉)?
  22. Soshin
    I think I would need a special setup to take good photos of the nioiguchi. Not sure... Thanks everyone for replying and likes of my photos. This sword is a real joy to clean, oil, examine, and photograph.
  23. Soshin
    The large Shoami group did not organize into regional schools (Aizu Shoami, Bizen Shoami, etc.) until the artists started moving out of Kyoto area into the castle towns of the various provinces. The artists of these regional schools had specific artist names that can be identified. These named artists represent the leaders of the peritubular regional school during the Edo Period.
  24. Soshin
    Nice tsuba thanks for sharing. My answer to your quoted question above is No. I would tend to agree with the attribution of Aizu Shoami on the old NBTHK paper. These tsuba dated from Edo and therefore calling them Ko-Shomai isn't correct as that attribution is only associated with works older than the Edo Period and were produced in and around the capital of Kyoto. I had a tsuba papered to Ko-Shoami and it was stylistically and technically quite different.
  25. Soshin
    I was doing a few different things around the house this afternoon including the cleaning my Japanese swords today before the seasonal change early next week and the coming of Summer. Here are some better photos of the Koto Kanemoto Katana that I received back from the polisher in February (previous topics are in this discussion group). I am no longer a Japanese sword dealer but can still take great photos. Here are a few resized for upload to NMB. Enjoy and feel free to discuss it politely.
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