Jeweled Tosogu

[Hokke]

Does anyone know if tosogu were ever adorned with jewels of any kind? I have looked but couldn't find any examples. Examples of diamond faceting have been around since the 15c. While Japan is not a notable producer of gems, the Portuguese certainly had had access to gems and could have made them available. I thought there would be at least one example for a tsuba owned by a daimyo or another high ranking imperial member where this design was employed. With the amount of pierced designs you find in tsuba, it also would have been relatively simple to do. 

About 20 years ago on a whim, I set some sapphires in f/k made by Patrick Hastings. They looked ok, but would have looked much better in tsuba, but I never got around to it......

[Spartancrest]

I have seen "stones" on tsuba as well as coral but not Jewels as such.

Check this thread. 

 

[Hokke]

Interesting, Id like to know how those stones are set. Even more curious now, as setting rounded cabochon style stones can be more difficult than setting gems, unless they were using some kind of adhesive, which seems unlikely.

[Hokke]

Here's a pic of the set I referenced above......I originally intended to have gems all the way around randomly, but after placing these sapphires, I wasn't as enthusiastic about the final look. Still plan on trying on a tsuba, just haven't found the right motif to accent. 

 

[PNSSHOGUN]

Have a look for Kazari Tachi. In the Meiji period when Cloisonné work was popular you will sometimes see gemwork. 

[Hokke]

1 hour ago, PNSSHOGUN said:

Have a look for Kazari Tachi. In the Meiji period when Cloisonné work was popular you will sometimes see gemwork. 

Found a few examples, some with raw stones set as mentioned by others and some with enamel work, but alas none with faceted gems…..interesting works though

[Curran]

11 hours ago, Hokke said:

Does anyone know if tosogu were ever adorned with jewels of any kind? I have looked but couldn't find any examples. Examples of diamond faceting have been around since the 15c. While Japan is not a notable producer of gems, the Portuguese certainly had had access to gems and could have made them available. I thought there would be at least one example for a tsuba owned by a daimyo or another high ranking imperial member where this design was employed. With the amount of pierced designs you find in tsuba, it also would have been relatively simple to do. 

About 20 years ago on a whim, I set some sapphires in f/k made by Patrick Hastings. They looked ok, but would have looked much better in tsuba, but I never got around to it......

 

Some Tokugawa tachi koshirae have a variety of stones.

I'd have to pull the Tokugawa book to remind myself what stones. 

Background:  had family and a friend who were bench jewelers. 20 years of hanging with them, and you learn a bit about stones by osmosis. I'm not a expert, but know a lot more than many.

[Hokke]

1 hour ago, Curran said:

I'd have to pull the Tokugawa book to remind myself what stones. 

That would be great, let me know what you find.

1 hour ago, Curran said:

20 years of hanging with them, and you learn a bit about stones by osmosis.

You betcha, it’s the best way to learn. Just like with college, the books only get you base and technical understanding, the majority is experience.

[Bugyotsuji]

I have a tsuba decorated with small rounded amber cabochons, but not exactly stones or jewels per se. They are set on circular rimmed presumably flat bases.

 

[Hokke]

24 minutes ago, Bugyotsuji said:

I have a tsuba decorated with small rounded amber cabochons, but not exactly stones or jewels per se. They are set on circular rimmed presumably flat bases.

 

Would love to see it if you want to post it. What is the age of the tsuba and from what is it made?

[Bugyotsuji]

It is iron, a large Namban, with a silver fukurin. Four and three, for seven amber cabochons. I am imagining early to mid Edo, when Namban were fashionable.(?)

The reverse

 

[Hokke]

Wow, thanks for posting that Piers……those amber cabs look bezel set, that would have been quite the chore in iron with amber being relatively brittle. 
*If* you ever get the opportunity and are feeling generous, I’d love to see a close up of one of the cabs.

[Bugyotsuji]

1 hour ago, Hokke said:

Wow, thanks for posting that Piers……those amber cabs look bezel set, that would have been quite the chore in iron with amber being relatively brittle. 
*If* you ever get the opportunity and are feeling generous, I’d love to see a close up of one of the cabs.

Had a quick search but it’s not here. It must be with the other lot. I’ll get back to you in October!
My initial impression was that they are not crimped in place like bezels, but set somehow with… glue(?) and the curved sides simply act to protect the stones from sideways knocks.

[ChrisW]

I have a kashira that has an inset amethyst stone. I am away from home for a few days, but when I return, I shall post some pictures of it. Heavy iron, gold wire trim.. overall a nice piece. Wish I had the fuchi for it!

[cluckdaddy76]

I have a papered wakizashi koshirae that has tiger eye on parts of the saya. The kojiri has a larger covering of it, and then up further are a few decorative rings of tiger eye too. If anyone is interested in pics, I could take some in the near future.

 

Jason

[Ray Singer]

This is a koshirae I just received a few days ago with a signed signed So-den Bizen blade from one of Enbun Kanemitsu's students. The koshirae has inlaid coral and malachite (in addition to the cloissone elements). The fittings have an Ezo / Umetada look to them (excluding the kojiri). 

 

Best regards, 

Ray 

[Hokke]

Very nice, thanks for posting those Ray.

[Hokke]

3 hours ago, Bugyotsuji said:

Had a quick search but it’s not here. It must be with the other lot. I’ll get back to you in October!
My initial impression was that they are not crimped in place like bezels, but set somehow with… glue(?) and the curved sides simply act to protect the stones from sideways knocks.

Ah, ok, that would make more sense. Hammering iron around amber is a butt clenching experience I would choose to avoid. Still it would need to be a relative close fit as glue, particularly then, couldn’t have been very malleable. 

[Hokke]

2 hours ago, cluckdaddy76 said:

I have a papered wakizashi koshirae that has tiger eye on parts of the saya. The kojiri has a larger covering of it, and then up further are a few decorative rings of tiger eye too. If anyone is interested in pics, I could take some in the near future.

 

Jason

Absolutely, post some pics if you get a chance, I’d be interested to see them.

[cluckdaddy76]

Quick pic from last night…

[Hokke]

I like the contrast on that, thanks for posting it. 

[Bugyotsuji]

The rings may be tortoiseshell…(?)

[Curran]

16 hours ago, Bugyotsuji said:

The rings may be tortoiseshell…(?)

 

That was my thought.

A pretty material that was once common, and now hard or expensive to come by.

 

[Curran]

Link 1:  https://romanceofmen.com/blogs/katana-info/what-is-koshirae?srsltid=AfmBOopl-20hAXeUlQXTVpH0pOyXCWeGtfwsPg0zq5oYBjDGU7QAE1bU

 

I also pulled the Tokugawa book and found the gold tachi koshirae on page 100.

I was not able to find the image online and expand it,

but I can say from the book that it looks like it has been set with some small rubies or very red carnelians.

Possibly some aquamarine too, or light blue spectrum stone. Given period of manufacture, the aquamarine is more likely than the blue topaz we see a lot of these days.

 

Curran

www.irontsuba.com

[ChrisW]

Definitely since the overwhelming majority of 'blue' topaz is lab-created by radiating or heating regular topaz and is a fairly recent innovation. Technically aquamarine is the blue specie of beryl, the family to which both emerald, aquamarine and topaz belong to, among others. But the lab created is done to fill in for colors that don't exist since most aquamarine is a very pale blue and as the supply of quality aquamarine is fairly low compared to topaz.

[Curran]

Just now, ChrisW said:

Definitely since the overwhelming majority of 'blue' topaz is lab-created by radiating or heating regular topaz and is a fairly recent innovation. Technically aquamarine is the blue specie of beryl, the family to which both emerald, aquamarine and topaz belong to, among others. But the lab created is done to fill in for colors that don't exist since most aquamarine is a very pale blue and as the supply of quality aquamarine is fairly low compared to topaz.

 

Yep. Memory says that aquamarine shot up in value in the late 1990s to early 2000s. Since 2004, I've been out of the community.

Blue Topaz is something that definitely invaded the markets in the 21st century. In my past, I never saw it.

 

Upon looking at the golden Tokugawa tachi-koshirae with magnification, it looks like a use of ruby, blue sapphire, a lighter jewel tone that I guessed to be aquamarine... but might be something else.

While we see coral, jade, etc on some of the tsuba from the 1800s, rarer gemstones seem to have seldomly been used.

 

 

[cluckdaddy76]

23 hours ago, Bugyotsuji said:

The rings may be tortoiseshell…(?)

 I can tell you that the rings are definitely different than the kojiri. I am sort of embarrassed I did not notice the difference before.  in defense my eyesight has plummeted these last few years, getting old really sucks. . The kojiri is tiger eye, but not tumbled and shiny as you see today. Tortoiseshell makes sense, I have a kushi/kogai tortoiseshell set that is very similar in color to the rings.