Help with tsuba artist's name

[Curran]

This is a signature from a tsuba:

 

章珉作

 

What would be the correct reading of the name?

I do not know whether to read the first character as 'Sho' or 'Ari' or alternate way?

 

 

Help is greatly appreciated.

[John A Stuart]

Hi Curran, Are you sure of the second kanji?? 珉 It is 'min' in Cantonese or Mandarin and is 'jade-like stone';

章 is 'zhang' in Mandarin or 'jeung' in Cantonese and is 'compostion'; so if not a name could mean made '作' 'saku' like a jadelike stone. If a Japanese name maybe 'Shoubin saku'. I can't find '珉' as part of '章珉', usually 'Aki something. If you mix them you have 'Shoumin'. Best I could do. John

[John A Stuart]

So, I looked it up and there are 'Shoumin', but not with that first kanji. John

[Curran]

John,

 

Yes. It is stumping me too.

The tsuba looks authentic and late Edo. I am pretty sure that is the correct second kanji.

I find some of these late Edo ones challenging as heck, as they got fancy with their names.

[Curran]

Might as well post a link to it:

http://page11.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/a ... n100480479

 

I don't like to do so since I know people here often bid on these auctions, but it isn't often that I get one to stump me.

I am curious who is this artist?

[cabowen]

I am not sure of the mei, but the tsuba also has 嘉山亭 written before the age of the artist. 亭　is often added to the end of the name of artists- just a guess but is it possible the maker's name is Kazan?

[Curran]

Well, according to Haynes Index:

 

Haynes list several Shomin. In the write-ups, one of the Shomin did work similar to this sort of Omori wave type. However, Haynes has a different first character for the name.

 

Also there is well known(?) Unno Shomin, using a different first character than I did not know could be read as 'Sho'. Unno Shomin did live a long time during the 19th and 20th century and pick up quite a few honorifics. I followed Haynes pointer to Wakayama books, but the pointer seems wrong referencing another smith on those pages. Many of the students did use than Min character, on into the 1970s?

So I don't know if this is one of the minor errors that appear in a few places in Haynes. I've run into a very small handful where he had a wrong character for the name of a specific artist.

 

I'm hoping one of our Japanese teachers or other member very fluent in reading kodogu signatures can solve this one.

[Curran]

Anyone? Morita-san?

[Curran]

The tsuba supposedly changed hands in Japan for about $800 and now is on eBay:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/4482-Japanese-S ... 4ab12ac1db

 

The seller says it reads as 'Shomin', which is how John suggested. Is anyone able to connect this to any of the tsuba smiths listed in Haynes?

 

It may just be a strange gimei.

As an aside: Shomin H 08764.0 seems to have some errors in linking to other Haynes references and the Wakayama reference at the bottom is not the same smith. I did not check the other references.

[NihontoEurope]

Curran,

 

The "章" character can be intepreted/read as "AKI" and "FUMI". I'm looking for other solutions...

 

Please hold.

 

/Martin

[NihontoEurope]

Curran,

 

An update:

 

The "章" character can be intepreted/read as "AKI", "FUMI", "TERU" and "MERU". The most common though, is "SHOU" or "SHō".

 

/Martin