Higo Tsuba ?

[Martin]

Hi all,

 

I have a brass Mokko-Gata Tsuba that I would like to discuss a little in search for some information as to its attribution.

The design is that of waves with gold dot inlays on the Omote.

The Ura is partly of the same design with an additional rocky-pebbles carved ground.

The punch marks to fit the Nakago have the form of a flower/star.

 

Sizes:

height: 8 cm

width: 7.5 cm

thickness: 3 mm

 

The design of the Hitsu-Ana and also the wave theme remind me of Higo Tsuba. I have found a Nishigaki II Tsuba (in Ito´s Higo book, page 190) that has a very similar workmanship regarding the waves.

 

The pictures lead to a page where some high resolution pictures (incl. the mentioned Nishigaki piece) are available - so be patient :D

 

Any comments will be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks,

Martin

 

 

[remzy]

Comments? ... I dont care who made it, I dont care from when it is, it is gorgeous!

[Steve Waszak]

Well, from what I know, the hitsuana definitely speak to Higo. I'm not especially familiar with Nishigaki wave design, but based on the ana alone, I would be thinking (late) Higo. I know you say this tsuba is brass, but it appears more like copper to me. Are you sure it's brass?

 

In any case, it is a beautiful piece...

 

Steve

[Martin]

Thanks Rémy & Steve,

I´m pretty sure it´s brass (Shinshu) - that´s how it was described when I bought it and in nature the color looks a bit different than in the pictures. When I bought it all the fine spaces in the waves were full of crud and old wax - and it was indeed some work until it was cleaned

And again I thought: What astonishing work these guys were able to create

[Brian Hancock]

I think Remzy hit it just right.Gorgeous!

[Martin]

Hi,

 

any other thoughts on maybe an attribution to a certain master?

 

cheers,

[Ford Hallam]

Hi Martin,

 

your tsuba cleaned up nicely . Good job!

 

For what it's worth, I would add my opinion to the description to it being of shinchu. A fairly typical alloy used in Higo. This is not the same as modern brass btw; shinchu is around about 15% zinc and a small ( .5% ) amount of lead while modern commercial brass has around 30% zinc and does not patinate well in conjunction with other traditional alloys.

 

The texture on the reverse is called "chidori-ishime" after the tiny footprints of those little birds in the wet sand on the seashore. It is produced by the use of a "Y" shaped punch. You may still be able to make out the odd "Y" shope in the texture that hasn't been altered by further punch work.

 

I think your placing it the Higo area and specifically the Nishigaki group is more than reasonable.

 

I don't believe that this piece can be attributed to any particular individual or master however.

 

If you look more closely at the example you mentioned you may be able to see a more fluent, and in fact fluid, working of the design. There are also more distinct aspects, such as the way that the waves seem to strech and then turn over at the last moment. On your example the curve of the waves is fairly even. The "fingers" at the edges of the waves as they break on Kanshiro's tsuba are quite plump and contained, while on your example they are a little more open and extended. On the back some of them look a bit awkward too, which makes me wonder if the makers apprentice may have helped here. There are 3 examples by the third master in Mr Ito's book also ( pp.244, 245 & 246 ). If you look critically at these you'll see further slight differences from the second masters work.

 

My feeling is that while this tsuba of yours is a perfectly accomplished piece of craftsmanship it lacks the sense of personal interpretation and expression that is so often the mark of a master. The very formalised, "safe" drawing of the design and the lack of inspiration in the carving, particularly in rendering of the crests of the waves, makes me think this is late Edo period work.

 

It is still a fine enough tsuba though and I do hope my comments are not too disappointing.

 

regards, Ford

[huntershooter]

Most fascinating piece.

[Martin]

Ford,

 

many thanks for your detailed thoughts

The "Chidori-Ishime" is a really interesting observation and if you look at the high resolution images (after clicking the pictures) you can indeed see the Y formed punchmarks.

 

I also noticed the differences to the Kanshiro piece. The "tips" of the waves are different as they are not as "massive" in my piece. I also considered that they might have once been filled with some inlay but on the other hand they are all the same (with no remains of inlays)...

 

Although there are differences between both pieces the design of the waves seem fairly similar and I did not find any piece in my reference books that would be as similar than the Kanshiro piece.

 

I also noticed that the Omote is a bit darker (more patinated) than the Ura side and wonder how this could be. Perhaps a longer exposure to air (when placed "Omote-up" on the pillow in the box)...

 

thanks for your thoughts,

[Martin]

So this is the one responsible for the design :D

[Ford Hallam]

Hi Martin,

 

brilliant! :D you couldn't have created a better visual explanation. I may "borrow" it myself .

 

cheers, Ford

 

p.s. that f/k set looks like Hastings school (?)

[Martin]

Hi Ford,

 

thanks :D. Please feel free to use it.

BTW do you have any idea concerning the differences in color on Omote and Ura or the inlay theory I mentioned in my pre-previous post?

 

cheers,