Where have all the iron tosogu gone

[sanjuro]

I have an interest in iron tosogu, and over the years I have managed to find the odd set complete. Once, pieces of iron tosogu were fairly easy to find and were relatively cheap, not so now. One wonders where they have gone, since most collectors are not interested in them mostly because they are fairly plain. These days we see fuchi kashira sets in iron but mostly from the early Edo period at the very earliest. The older pieces seem to be very rare, and iron menuki are rarer than rocking horse poo.

 

Any theories (or even better - specific knowledge) ?

[cabowen]

We know that iron is harder to work and more prone to corrosion than the soft metals. Those two facts may account for the dearth of iron kodogu.

 

I have a set of iron menuki made as kanabo with small, silver colored spikes. Have never seen another pair like them. I have always kept an eye out for iron menuki and fuchi-gashira as I prefer the simplicity and aesthetic of simple iron but have seen few so I would agree with you on the issue of rarity.

[b.hennick]

I too like iron fittings. Here is a link to some iron menuki. BTW I am always on the lookout for iron menuki and fuchi kashira.

https://picasaweb.google.com/b.hennick/ ... 6PE_82cIw#

 

This second link includes some good fuchi kashira as well as some other fittings:

 

https://picasaweb.google.com/b.hennick/ ... st68lp7nQg

[raiden]

tetsugendo shoraku iron menuki dojoji

[raiden]

I agree that iron menuki are very rare, usually the nicer ones are from the tetsugendo school. One time however, I saw a collection of around 5 sets of very poor iron menuki, they were interesting, but the quality was very poor. I still wonder who made so many low level iron menuki. Fuchi Kashira are seen quite a bit especially in Kyushu pieces.

[John A Stuart]

Here is a lower quality kashira in iron. I bought it on a whim as it has no fuchi. No idea scholl or what-not. John

[Curran]

Especially good condition iron higo f/k. One restorer realized this early and bought up whatever he could find. Another restorer offered me 150% for a set he'd sold me the year before. Even Cary Condell came to me trying to buy a complete set many years ago.

 

I sold off a papered Inagawa iron set I had of "Daruma" to a New Jersey collector a few years ago, and never seen the like since.

[Soshin]

Hi Everyone,

 

I once had a complete koshirae including kojiri at one time that was all iron with exception of the menuki which were copper if I remember correctly. The tsuba was a large Tempo tsuba with hot stamps of the kotobuki Kanji character. I don't see very many.

 

 

 

Yours truly,

David Stiles

[sanjuro]

Like the rest of you I only see incomplete sets of F/K or the odd single menuki now.

I have a complete set of plain undecorated iron. Fuchi, kashira, kurikata and kojiri. It was I think originally for an uchigatana or katana judging by size. The fuchi was not 'relieved' for kogai or kozuka so I assume there were none originally. The menuki (assuming that the original mounting had them), unfortunately were not included nor was the tsuba. I bought them as a set. My guess would be Higo style judging by the rounded kashira , early Edo although I have had opinions that say earlier.

Some earlier sets of iron tosogu of course may not have had menuki as such, but rather just a short bar set under the lacquered binding of the tsuka, since this was a popular and cheap mounting style during the Sengoku jidai. Or if there were menuki they may have been of metal other than iron as in David's example.

However, considering the quantity of cheap iron pieces of tosogu that were literally churned out for mounting on Ashigaru weapons during the Sengoku jidai, and given that most collectors prefer the ko kinko tosogu, I'm rather surprised that there are not quite a few pieces still around in the market place.

On the brighter side, recently, (a few months ago), I did get a nice set of iron rain dragon menuki big enough for a tachi, (on ebay strangely enough, and with no competing bidders). They turned out to be quite early pieces.

 

So there are a few (though very few) of us out there judging by the responses, who appreciate the simplicity, beauty and appeal of iron tosogu. And though Barry got in first, I too would like to hear of any iron tosogu out there that is unloved and unwanted.

[Lee Bray]

Here's a reasonable, almost complete set on a wakizashi of mine.

https://picasaweb.google.com/1083860067 ... sGU8vnx4gE

 

Fuchi, kashira, kuchigane and kojiri are matching but the kurikata and the cap on the kodzuka slot were missing.

Menuki are of shakudo and the tsuba that came with it originally didn't match or fit so I replaced it with the current piece.

[Ron STL]

Interesting to see these iron fittings. I have one pair of iron "dragon/tiger" iron menuki, one of only two sets that I recall ever coming through my hands. I also find iron ko-jiri interesting when thinking how they hammered these out to fit a saya. Does anyone have any information on how these ko-jiri were formed?

Ron STL

[Lee Bray]

Ron, the dragon kojiri on my wakizashi is formed in two separate halves and soldered/brazed together.

 

Edit - The two halves aren't separate, rather it's a one piece construction, folded in the centre with the top and side brazed together.

[docliss]

Here are two iron fuchi-gashira for the purists.

 

The first is a heavy pair of polished iron, bearing a high relief, pentagonal star, one on the kashira and two on the fuchi. The apices of the latter two are raised above the upper margin of the kashira. The fuchi is inscribed TEMPO JU SAN MIDZUNOYE TORA NEN SEIKA KISSHIN (1842 A Lucky Day in Mid-Summer).

 

The second, also, is of iron. The fuchi, with a delicate, raised rim, is tsuboguchi-gata while the kashira, also with a raised rim, is natsume-gata. Both are decorated with hira-zōgan sprays of chrysanthemums, the stems and leaves of silver and the blossoms with alternate gold and silver centres and petals; the leaves have kebori veining. The fuchi is signed, in silver hira-zōgan, IEHISA.

 

Although very Higo-esque in appearance, this pair is probably by Kitamura Iehisa I or II, working in Kaga in 1650-1700. Both artists are noted by Haynes as using silver hira-zōgan on tsuba and abumi.

 

John L.

[kusunokimasahige]

Very interesting that the pentagram is such an international symbol !

 

KM

[drbvac]

Here are the furnishings from the mounts from my Kanefusa and they are signed by Hirotoshi but not the hirotoshi but they are iron

 

[drbvac]

RE : The pentagram - as you said it seems to be a universal and ancient symbol but I wonder about the variation in its usage and its meaning ?

[John A Stuart]

The mystical symbol of the equidistant five-pointed star, referred to in the West as a pentagram, is known in Japan as the Seiman or the Seal of Abe no Seimei. If you google Abe no Seimei you will see how even in Japan this symbol had mystical properties. John

[NihontoEurope]

Hello,

 

Here is an iron Tsuba of mine.

 

[attachment=0]IMG_6611_r.jpg[/attachment]

 

/Martin

[NihontoEurope]

Interesting to see these iron fittings. I have one pair of iron "dragon/tiger" iron menuki, one of only two sets that I recall ever coming through my hands. I also find iron ko-jiri interesting when thinking how they hammered these out to fit a saya. Does anyone have any information on how these ko-jiri were formed?

Ron STL

 

Ron,

 

When looking at fitting where you see "803.jpg" at the butt end.

 

What do you call this type of Koshirae and is this from a specific time period?

 

Anyone have any idea?

 

/Martin

[Marius]

tetsugendo shoraku iron menuki dojoji[attachment=0]nmb-dojoji.jpg[/attachment]

 

 

Mike, could these represent Kyohime-turned-serpent embracing the temple bell? Lovely, BTW.

[Ford Hallam]

Ron,

 

this sequence of images should illustrate the process of forming both kashira and kojiri in steel. The procedure for non-ferrous metal is essentially the same but doesn't require that the metal be red hot.

 

https://picasaweb.google.com/102920321260461207557/JohnSFuchiKashiraTheMakingOf#5350915403291840530

 

hope that helps,

 

fh

[b.hennick]

Ford I love your work!

[peterd]

My contribution, I'm not sure on the signature though.

Peter

[Chris Colman]

Complete set of iron tosugu from a later generation Echizen Yasutsugu wakizashi, one of my favourite koshirae because of its simplicity. I am not sure if shark skin is used in stead of ray skin, the nodes are uniform any thoughts on this would be appreciated. The menuki I assume are based on the kenuki gata no tachi worn by Yoritomo in the well known portrait.

[Chris Colman]

Remaining photos of the Yasutsugu koshirae

 

Also a set of iron fuchi-kashira with chider, I particularly liked this set because the chidori are almost a match for the tsuba which I have had for quite a few years. A more experienced collector than I told me the head was missing from the bird on the left other wise what a good tsuba it was. Seeing missing heads on the fuchi-kashira was quite pleasing.

[raiden]

unusual signature that requires a bit more study and then a shinsa try

[raiden]

hit submit before the pic!

[raiden]

[John A Stuart]

I wonder why it was inscribed 肥後 Higo with no artist name? other than it does appear Higo work. John

[micha]

Does everybody have any idea of school about this koshirae

 

Micha