Category: Tsuba

A fountain pulley hangs from a crossbeam, with a rope and water bucket suspended over the pulley.
Ground-covering bamboo sprouts between the stones. Two crows fly high above.
On the reverse, a signature in seal script inlaid with gold.

Genshosai Masaharu (died 1724) is known for his very bold and prominent relief designs. Some examples of his works are exhibited in the Walters Art Museum, Baltimore USA.

On the front, we see a dragon rising from storm clouds. Traces of golden decorations are still visible in the rain and on the dragon itself.

Our gaze is drawn to the dragon’s mouth and eye, highlighted with copper and gold, which stand out clearly against the dark iron base plate of the tuba.

The reverse depicts a different, more tranquil scene. The clouds have cleared, and a building, presumably a pagoda, can be seen behind a mountain in the distance. Closer to the viewer, another building is discernible, towards which two figures are moving amidst a rocky landscape. Several trees—some stylized—are carved from the base.

Two hitsu-ana, one of them carefully filled with shakudo.

A good example of how beautiful and artfully crafted tsuba don’t have to break the bank.

Kiku Flower – Chrysanthemum on a Mokume Ground.

Tsuguhide (Haynes No. 10749.0) was born in 1772 and died in 1861. He was the swordsmith of the third Tsuguhira. This is a typical work by him: an intricately forged, sixteen-petaled kiku flower on a mokume ground. The solid iron tsuba hints at how difficult it must have been to carve the mei into the flower. At 4.5 mm thick, it is quite heavy for its size.

Exceptionally well-cut tsuba with Tomoyoshi’s famous dragon design.

Fine kiri-mon tsuba on shakudo-nanko. The kiri-mon overlay covers the edge of the tsuba. A small and delicate piece for a person of higher rank. Attributed to Yoshioka according to the NBTHK Hozon certificate.

If you like dragons on your tsuba and love shakudo-nanako, this is the tsuba for you. Attributed to Kyo Kinko by NBTHK Hozon certification. Truly magnificent, the way the two dragons form the rim of the tsuba.

A robust and powerfully crafted tsuba with a wheel motif. This tsuba conveys the impression of the powerful forging skills of a Myochin master. The Myochin were primarily known for their armor production.

Kamiyoshi tsuba with cherry blossom and warabite design, forged from fantastic iron.

A very similar tsuba of the first generation Kamiyoshi is published in Ito Mitsuro’s book “Works of Hayashi & Kamiyoshi” No. 176, but has a few less details than the work shown here. This tsuba was probably made by the second generation Kamiyoshi Fukanobu.
It already has an NBTHK Hozon paper and comes in a high quality custom made box.

This tsuba comes from the collection of the famous kodogu collector Kokubo Kenichi and is attributed to Echizen Akao. The design shows the crescent moon with stars and a flying bird, probably a swallow, while everything is surrounded by clouds. The design looks surprisingly modern with the curved lines as clouds, while the moon forms the hitsuana.

Sukashi tsuba with the famous “Musashino” motif. A great battle was fought in the fields of Musashino (near Tokyo). Typically, this design only shows some blades of grass with raindrops or morning dew, suggesting the aftermath of the great battle. In some more rustic or aggressive designs, even bones or skulls are shown.

On this Edo period tsuba, we also find drops of water on the grass and in addition, karigane flying over the field. A very nice interpretation of Musashino.