Hector Posted July 13 Report Posted July 13 I just successfully bid on this tsuba and so these are the seller's photos. I loved the overall design and the color of the steel - hope it's the same in hand. Looks kind of Higo to me but I'm no expert. Best, Hector 5 Quote
Hokke Posted July 13 Report Posted July 13 Good looking tsuba.....I like the texture and it looks like it tapers nicely toward the edge. What are the dimensions and any idea of the motif? 1 Quote
Kanenaga Posted July 13 Report Posted July 13 The tagane-mei suggests perhaps Kamiyoshi work, but I've forgotten whose combination this is (2/3). 1 1 Quote
Curran Posted July 13 Report Posted July 13 51 minutes ago, Kanenaga said: The tagane-mei suggests perhaps Kamiyoshi work, but I've forgotten whose combination this is (2/3). Yes. Thank you. Most of the time Kamiyoshi. I always forget which punch pattern is which guy. That is the value of Ito-san's books. 1 Quote
Hector Posted July 14 Author Report Posted July 14 9 hours ago, Hokke said: Good looking tsuba.....I like the texture and it looks like it tapers nicely toward the edge. What are the dimensions and any idea of the motif? Many thanks! The dimensions are 79.3 x 78 x 4.5mm and the motif was described as being 'clouds and tomoe'. 1 Quote
Hector Posted July 14 Author Report Posted July 14 @Kanenaga and @Curran Based on your observations about the tanage-mei, I did some research and came up with a Kamiyoshi Rakujū (1817–1884) who was the third generation of his school. He did 2 punch marks above and 3 below. Much appreciated! Hector 1 Quote
lonely panet Posted July 14 Report Posted July 14 iv seen the auction and i passed on it, bit sceptical. i got "moden" vibes but i wont bid now and just let this fish swim best of luck Quote
ROKUJURO Posted July 14 Report Posted July 14 5 hours ago, Hector said: Based on your observations about the tanage-mei, ..... Hector, it is TAGANE MEI. As to the motif, I believe it is TOMOE and waves, not clouds. What do you think? Quote
Hector Posted July 14 Author Report Posted July 14 5 hours ago, lonely panet said: iv seen the auction and i passed on it, bit sceptical. i got "moden" vibes but i wont bid now and just let this fish swim best of luck Thanks Hamish. For 120 bucks, I thought I'd roll the dice. I'll report more when I get it in hand. Best, Hector 2 Quote
Hector Posted July 14 Author Report Posted July 14 4 hours ago, ROKUJURO said: Hector, it is TAGANE MEI. As to the motif, I believe it is TOMOE and waves, not clouds. What do you think? Hi Jean, I always mess up the Japanese spellings! Now you mention it, it does look more like waves than clouds. Best, Hector Quote
Hector Posted July 15 Author Report Posted July 15 Received the tsuba today and I'm very happy with it! I just went crazy with my iPhone to try and show more details of structure and iron. Opinions welcome as to modern or antique. 2 Quote
ROKUJURO Posted July 15 Report Posted July 15 A really nice one. I like it! Concerning the condition of a TSUBA, we usually do not know how it was stored and preserved in the past. This will have a big impact on the surface condition. In this case, it looks consistent with KAMIYOSHI's working period to me. I don't think it is modern. 2 1 Quote
Hector Posted July 15 Author Report Posted July 15 2 hours ago, ROKUJURO said: A really nice one. I like it! Concerning the condition of a TSUBA, we usually do not know how it was stored and preserved in the past. This will have a big impact on the surface condition. In this case, it looks consistent with KAMIYOSHI's working period to me. I don't think it is modern. Thank you, Jean! Quote
Kiko Posted July 15 Report Posted July 15 Same here—I think it's a nice tsuba! However, I admit that Hamfish's comment has made me curious, and now I'd really like to know the reasons for the skepticism. 1 Quote
Matsunoki Posted July 15 Report Posted July 15 Looking at the inner edges of the sukashi……doesn’t look remotely new to me. There is a distinct difference between the finish on the later insert and the older original edges….as you would expect from later modification (in shakudo?) imo 2 Quote
Curran Posted July 15 Report Posted July 15 1 hour ago, Kiko said: Same here—I think it's a nice tsuba! However, I admit that Hamfish's comment has made me curious, and now I'd really like to know the reasons for the skepticism. It was the photos from the auction. I totally understand Hamish's thoughts. The copies of iron tsuba have been getting better, warranting more caution. I saw it too and thought it a bargain when I looked at it. Price made me look cautiously to see if it was a modern. I didn't think it was, but I'm more of a tourist at this moment as I save up funds for around the time of the DTI this year. I thought of posting it on NMB that it might be a good value one, but stopped myself knowing good deeds like to get punished. Glad that someone from NMB picked it up and is pleased with it. 4 Quote
Spartancrest Posted July 16 Report Posted July 16 (edited) A modern version for Iaido practice swords - hand made in Spain ! https://tanakabuki.com.ar/product/iaito-nacional-dotanuki/ https://superiorswords.com/tsuba-ti09/ - the fact that two companies are making replicas would suggest they are basing their design on a known pattern. I just have to keep searching to find where it is - perhaps Hector now holds it! https://www.ebay.com/itm/236930251257 not quite there but close possibly the same one on Yahoo. Edited July 16 by Spartancrest More images 2 Quote
Hector Posted July 16 Author Report Posted July 16 1 hour ago, Spartancrest said: A modern version for Iaido practice swords - hand made in Spain ! https://tanakabuki.com.ar/product/iaito-nacional-dotanuki/ https://superiorswords.com/tsuba-ti09/ - the fact that two companies are making replicas would suggest they are basing their design on a known pattern. I just have to keep searching to find where it is - perhaps Hector now holds it! https://www.ebay.com/itm/236930251257 not quite there but close possibly the same one on Yahoo. Sheesh! My heart skipped a beat when I first saw those photos, Dale! With several people passing on my Tsuba's auction because they thought it was modern, I was seriously worried I might have ended up with an iaito accessory!😳 However, the more I examine it the more I'm convinced it's genuine but probably no earlier than mid 19th Century. Once upon a time, I would have even have gone so far as to put it in for shinsa but the NBTHK's considerable price hike prohibits me from doing that nowadays. Many thanks to everyone who commented - your input is often part of the pleasure of obtaining a new piece. 😊 Best, Hector 2 Quote
GRC Posted July 19 Report Posted July 19 That seller coats all his tsuba with some sort of chemical patination to give them a uniform black surface. He never applies the treatment to the sukashi walls. I suspect he gets most of his stuff in rusty condition then dresses them up and sells them with low starting prices and sometimes some very tempting buyout prices. Given the breadth and diversity of his listings, these are all legit period tsuba and not modern repros. That's what I have observed from this seller for several years now... I used to joke with another collector when I saw another one of his freshly blackened tsuba and say "here's another one that has been "crowned""... crown is part of the seller's name. I also noticed that soon after we started naming sellers like this on NMB a few years ago, that suddenly the auction site started partially hiding seller names with stars. 1 Quote
GRC Posted July 19 Report Posted July 19 (edited) As for the motif, although I can see how it could be interpreted as waves, I think this is a pretty clear example of two billowing clouds/wind with two mini tomoe placed inside. A very similar cloud pattern is frequently seen on tsuba that also show lightning, which is why I am pretty certain it represents blustering wind or clouds. Here's an example from a Sado island tsuba where the mokume swirl enhances the overall storm motif: Edited July 19 by GRC 6 1 Quote
Curran Posted July 19 Report Posted July 19 24 minutes ago, GRC said: As for the motif, although I can see how it could be interpreted as waves, but I think this is a pretty clear example of two billowing clouds/wind with two mini tomoe placed inside. A very similar cloud pattern is frequently seen on tsuba that also show lightning, which is why I am pretty certain it represents blustering wind or clouds. Here's an example from a Sado island tsuba where the mokume swirl enhances the overall storm motif: cool tsuba. I hope to visit Sado island some day. Hang out with the Tanuki. 1 Quote
Spartancrest Posted July 19 Report Posted July 19 I think this is a modern piece the grain of the metal just doesn't look like it should to me and the nakago-ana looks contrived. What do others think? https://www.jauce.com/auction/g1232582165 1 Quote
Brian Posted July 19 Report Posted July 19 Nakago ana looks impractical. Doesn't convince me 1 1 Quote
ROKUJURO Posted July 19 Report Posted July 19 Of course tourist TSUBA! The SADO TSUBA shows a typical smoke (see attached photo) and INAZUMA motif. But in Hector's TSUBA, clouds are not as obvious to me. 1 Quote
Hector Posted July 21 Author Report Posted July 21 On 7/19/2026 at 11:45 AM, GRC said: That seller coats all his tsuba with some sort of chemical patination to give them a uniform black surface. He never applies the treatment to the sukashi walls. I suspect he gets most of his stuff in rusty condition then dresses them up and sells them with low starting prices and sometimes some very tempting buyout prices. Given the breadth and diversity of his listings, these are all legit period tsuba and not modern repros. That's what I have observed from this seller for several years now... I used to joke with another collector when I saw another one of his freshly blackened tsuba and say "here's another one that has been "crowned""... crown is part of the seller's name. I also noticed that soon after we started naming sellers like this on NMB a few years ago, that suddenly the auction site started partially hiding seller names with stars. Hi Glen, I presume you're talking about the seller of the tsuba I just bought? Looking at his previous sales I can see exactly what you mean. (He was actually the guy selling the 'Yagyu style' tsuba which I flagged up here a couple of weeks ago which all looked very shiny, very black and very new.) In hand, mine does not actually look black and is certainly not shiny; it is a matt charcoal with a deep chocolate undertone (it sounds like a cooking programme 😁). Perhaps he couldn't apply his usual chemicals as they would screw up the shakudo insert? Anyhow, for the minor financial hit and lack of hassle with mailing (I live in Japan), I'm very happy with what I got! Best, Hector Quote
Hector Posted July 21 Author Report Posted July 21 On 7/19/2026 at 8:57 PM, Spartancrest said: I think this is a modern piece the grain of the metal just doesn't look like it should to me and the nakago-ana looks contrived. What do others think? https://www.jauce.com/auction/g1232582165 Wow! If I'd seen that posted before I bid in the Yahoo auction, I would have steered well clear! It's frightening how identical the design is to mine. 😳 As always Dale, I'd be very, very interested to hear your thoughts on what I got. Best, Hector Quote
Lewis B Posted July 21 Report Posted July 21 4 minutes ago, Hector said: Wow! If I'd seen that posted before I bid in the Yahoo auction, I would have steered well clear! It's frightening how identical the design is to mine. 😳 As always Dale, I'd be very, very interested to hear your thoughts on what I got. Best, Hector While the motif looks quite similar the quality of execution is superior on your piece and it has an air of antiquity. Its also a lot thicker from what I can tell. 1 Quote
Hector Posted July 21 Author Report Posted July 21 22 minutes ago, Lewis B said: While the motif looks quite similar the quality of execution is superior on your piece and it has an air of antiquity. Its also a lot thicker from what I can tell. Thanks Lewis The one that Dale posted does look like a thin, cast piece to me. However, it doesn't take very much to frighten me off an auction nowadays. 😁 1 Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.