EDO PERIOD WAKIZASHI KOSHIRAE

[bmoore1322]

I recently bought this, and it showed up in the mail today, and thought i would share it here.

 

Koshirae info;

 

This set of Koshirae has broken fans design, with soft metal FUCHI-KASHIRA.

 

Large iron tsuba with what appears to be either gold, or brass inlayed, radiating out in a fan shape, comes with a standard , and a two piece Habaki, and two wooden blades.

 

I think this is Edo period, but i could be wrong, the Mekugi pulls apart, is not the screw together type.

 

The Saya is in perfect condition, the Sageo on it looks new though.

 

There is a signature on the Tsuka wood part.

 

Brian

[bmoore1322]

More pics.

 

Brian

[bmoore1322]

Now for the big question, should I leave it the way it is, or should I find a blade that will fit it, and how would I do that without buying the incorrect blade for proper fitment.

 

Brian

[Jacques D.]

Hi,

 

A koshirae must fit the blade not the contrary.

 

Buy knowledge instead swords.

[bmoore1322]

Yes, that is what I meant, sorry.

 

Sometimes i do not word things the way i want them to sound.

 

I did take the Tsuba to a buddy that owns a pawn shop, he did a small scratch test, put a drop of acid on the gold he scratched on the plate, and it did test positive for gold.

 

It is Gold, the seller thought it was brass, it is not.

 

Brian

[Mark C]

Hi,

 

IMHO I would leave it as is, the chances of getting a blade to fit are slim.

 

It makes a nice display piece.

 

Regards

 

Mark

[bmoore1322]

@ Mark

 

The idea of getting a blade for it was just a thought, and I know it would be nearly impossible to find one for it, so yes it will probably remain the way it is, and that it is Gold , not brass just makes it mush better.

 

I'm sure this was not some sword that belonged to a merchant, or just an ordinary person, I wonder who would have owned such a sword like this.

 

Brian

[Ray Singer]

This is a good way to destroy the patina on a nice piece of kodogu. Whether a piece has gold inlay is not a determining factor for its value. The value has much more to do with the workmanship, importance of the kinko, etc. Scratching the inlay to acid test the metal underneath will remove the patina and it may be impossible to repair the damage. Regardless, you can often tell whether a piece has sections of gold inlay by the kinsabi (gold patina) which develops over time. It is a reddish color and is extremely beautiful.

 

I did take the Tsuba to a buddy that owns a pawn shop, he did a small scratch test, put a drop of acid on the gold he scratched on the plate, and it did test positive for gold.

[Ray Singer]

A couple of examples showing how gold patinates. It would be tragic to damage a patina like this to just to test something which you should be able to evaluate by sight with a bit of study.

 

http://www.nihonto.us/ARAKI%20TOMEI%20M ... MENUKI.htm

http://nihonto.com/11.1.09.html

 

that it is Gold , not brass just makes it mush better.

 

There are many wonderful tsuba which have brass inlay. This is nothing to look down at.

[bmoore1322]

He did a very tiny scratch, the only way to be able to test it, cannot really tell where he did the test scratch at all.

 

he did the type of test onto a plate, and put the acid onto the plate, not on the tsuba.

 

 

Brian

[Ken-Hawaii]

A couple of examples showing how gold patinates.

 

If a patina forms on gold, then the gold is simply not pure. 24-karat gold does not oxidize.

 

Ken

[Toryu2020]

Brian -

FWIW I think the wood on your saya and tsuka both appear very new, 20th century. The kaeshizuno looks to be katana size and new. That is not a signature but a production number. Also in the fuchi it looks like there are little dings showing new metal - this is never good since something untouched from the Edo period even with dings should show age/patination appropriate for the age. If I had to say I would say your fittings are older but the whole koshirae was put together recently. Certainly as a display piece very nice looking and the fittings are honest but i would say this was no a whole set worn by anyone prior to 1945...

-t

[Brian]

Agree with Tom, the tsuka is certainly newly made. Not uncommon....and in fact finding a set that was originally together is unusual.

Most koshirae we see are put together.

Hope you are not thinking the tsuba is made of gold, because that is just not true. It is brass. Maybe there is a little gold flash coating which gave the reading, but it certainly isn't gold. You are not going to find a tsuba made of gold..or even one where the gold content is more than the tsuba is worth.

Lastly, when I read things like "I'm sure this was not some sword that belonged to a merchant, or just an ordinary person, I wonder who would have owned such a sword like this" it makes me want to have a fit.

That is the big indicator that the person is still collecting "samurai swords" and not art. Forget about the romance of "Samurai swords" and start understanding that most swords were not used in battle...hundreds of thousands were owned by merchants, doctors and normal people. Most were put together during times of peace, and a flashy koshirae had more chance of being built for some commoner than someone who was fighting with it.

It's a nice koshirae put together by any Nihonto enthusiast or dealer. Average fittings that complement each other. Probably a project that someone never completed. Display it and enjoy it.

 

 

Brian