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Robert E. Haynes Catalog of April 9-11, 1982, № 36.
Robert E. Haynes Catalog of April 9-11, 1982, № 36.
Tsuba of oval form decorated with vines, tendrils, and leaves on trellis in brass inlay with details carved in kebori, and pierced with six family crests (mon) with two, three and four pointing stars in openwork, each outlined with brass wire and carved in kebori. Original hitsu-ana outlined with brass wire was probably enlarged later. Copper sekigane.
Momoyama to early Edo period (end of the 16th - beginning of the 17th century). Dimensions: 68.3 x 64.5 x 3.4 mm.Iron tsuba of round form with dam-shaped rim (dote-mimi) pierced with hitsu-ana and two udenuki-ana (probably cut later on) decorated in flat inlay (hira-zōgan) with vines and symbols of thunder or lightning (possibly - family crest, mon). Hitsu-ana and nakago-ana with copper sekigane.
Ōnin or Heianjō school, or, possibly Kaga or Umetada school. Momoyama period or earlier (Muromachi), 16th century. Unsigned.Size: 64.5 x 63.8 x 2.2 (center), 4.2 (rim) mm.
Provenance: Lundgren Collection: [Japanese sword-fittings and metalwork in the Lundgren Collection. Published by Otsuka Kogeisha Co., Ltd., Tokyo 1992], №31; The Lundgren Collection of Japanese Swords, Sword Fittings and A Group of Miochin School Metalwork. Christie's Auction: Tuesday, 18 November 1997, London. Sales "GOTO-5881". Christie's, 1997, №2. Lundgren's description at Christie's: Heianjo tsuba. Unsigned. The circular plate decorated in brass hirazogan with flowers, plants and symbols of thunder, dote mimi and udenuki ana, late Muromachi period (16th century). Tokyo 1992 description: Sword guard with design of flowering plants and frets in inlay. Unsigned. Heianjo inlay school. 6.35 x 6.3 cm, thickness of rim 0.40 cm. Iron. Flat brass inlay. Muromachi-Momoyama Period, 16th century. Provenance: The Second John Harding. A somewhat look-a-like pieces can be found in various catalogues. The one in Naunton Collection, №172, is signed: Umetada of Yamashiro: "Iron, small, almost circular, with raised oval rim, inlaid all over with leaves and scrolls in brass hirazōgan."Japanese art and handicraft, Plate CX, #128.
Compton Collection, Part I, #7.
Size: 75.0 x 74.4 x 3.6 (center), 5.0 (rim) mm.
The plant Marsilea (paddy plant, denjiso), common names include water clover and four-leaf clover because the long-stalked leaves have four clover-like lobes and are either held above water or submerged. In The elements of Japanese design by John W. Dower, this motif is listed under the numbers 634-35 Paddy Plant (denjiso). Obviously, as a four-leaf clover it is an auspicious symbol. The four leaves radiate out as the shape of the kanji 田 (romaji 'ta'), which means 'rice paddy'. This symbol may be used as a family crest (mon), and this would be the most probable explanation of the sukashi on this tsuba.Compton Collection, Part II, p.p. 26-27, №54.
Iron tsuba of mokko form decorated with trellis, vines, foliage, and gourds inlaid in brass with details carved in low relief.
NBTHK: Tokubetsu Hozon №2003186.
Momoyama period (1574 – 1603). Dimensions: H: 85.5 cm, W: 79 mm, Thickness (centre): 4.8 mm. Tsuba of a similar design can be found in this collection [TSU-0373]. In that example, the plate was later pierced with geometrical mon-like openwork to resemble Koike Yoshirō's handguards. More about this type of tsuba here.Gary D. Murtha's tsuba on page 61.
![]() Kiri-mon |
![]() Katakura-mon |
Iron tsuba of round form decorated with eight roundels – circular emblems of flowers and/or family crests (mon) made of cast brass, pierced and chiseled in kebori, and with flat brass inlay (hira-zōgan) of vines or leaves all over the plate. Both hitsu-ana could have been trimmed with brass now lacking. Nakago-ana of triangular form, possibly enlarged, with copper sekigane. All typical emblems with bellflower, two variations on suhama theme, and 3, 4, 5, and 6-poinitng mon variations. A distinctive character of this tsuba is a mon at 12 hours depicting water plantain (omodaka).
“Omodaka was also called shōgunsō (victorious army grass); because of this martial connotation, it was a design favored for the crests of samurai families” [Family crests of Japan, Stone Bridge Press, Berkeley, California]. Yoshirō school (Kaga-Yoshirō). The Momoyama or early Edo period, beginning of 17th century. Size: Height: 81.4 mm; width: 81.2; thickness 3.8 mm at seppa-dai."Early signed example of the work of Koike Naomasa. The kiku shape iron plate is well finished. The flush inlay is brass, for the scroll work on both sides, with the leaves and kiri mon in brass, copper and silver with strong detail carving. Some of the inlay goes almost over the edge, which is goishi gata. The large hitsuana are plugged in lead with starburst kokuin surface design. [...]The face is signed in deep bold kanji: Koike Naomasa; the back is signed: Izumi no Kami, on the right and Yoshiro on the left. There are one or two small pieces of inlay missing. Sold by Sotheby London, Oct. 27, 1981, lot 368. Height = 86 mm, thickness (seppa-dai) = 3.75 mm, (edge) = 4 mm."Another similar example presented at: "Tsuba" by Günter Heckmann, 1995, №T55 — "Designation: Koike Naomasa. Mid Edo, end of the 17th century. Iron, hira-zogan in brass, copper, silver and shakudo, katakiri-bori. Tendrils and leaves. 87.0 x 78.0 x 4.0 mm." Reference: Japanische Schwertzierate by Lumir Jisl, 1967, page. 13. [SV: Actually, his tsuba is signed Izumi no Kami Yoshiro on the back; and Koike Naomasa on the front, exactly as Robert Haynes's tsuba. Dating this tsuba Mid-Edo, 17th century may be considered a misattribution]. More details regarding the Yoshirō tsuba.
Iron tsuba of mokkō form (mokkōgata) pierced (sukashi) and inlaid with precast dark brass inlay (taka-zōgan) with somewhat abstract/geometrical design that can be liberally described as pines, mist, and snow.
Momoyama or early Edo period. End of the 16th - beginning of the 17th century. Heianjō school. Unsigned. Dimensions: 86.8 x 82.9 x 4.5 mm.The Henry D. Rosin Collection №9.
Lundgren Collection №7.
Iron tsuba of round form pierced (sukashi) in a chessboard fashion and decorated with linear (sen-zōgan) and cast (suemon-zōgan) brass inlay, including symbols of the swastika, flower-lozenge, maple leaf, pine needle, etc. on both sides; rim and openings outlined with brass inlay. Nakagō-ana plugged with copper fittings (sekigane).
Momoyama period. End of the 16th - beginning of the 17th century. Dimensions: Diameter: 75.5; Thickness: 4.5 mm.TSU-0353: Tōshō tsuba, Muromachi period.
A kamakura-bori tsuba. Momoyama period. Freeman & Sharpe Memorial Collections.
Iron tsuba of mokkō form decorated with inome (wild boar's eye) in openwork (sukashi) outlined with brass wire. The plate decorated with 3 concentric circular rows of brass dots in ten-zōgan. Center of the plate outlined with the inlaid circular brass wire (sen-zōgan). Some dots and the outline of inome on the face are missing.
Ōnin school. Unsigned. Mid Muromachi period, middle of the 15th century. Dimensions: 72.1 x 71.3 x 2.3 mm.Iron tsuba of round form with design of hatchet, snowflake, and triple diamond in openwork (ko-sukashi), and inlaid with five concentric circles of brass dots (ten-zōgan) and brass inner circular line. Sukashi elements outlined in brass.
Late Muromachi period. Diameter: 82.4 mm; Thickness: 3.0 mm The triple lozenge (or diamond) is similar to the one on TSU-305 from Sasano Collection # 15. Very old motif; as Sasano remarks in his book "...represents the unstable political situation at the time".Kokusai Tosogu Kai 5th International Convention & Exhibition, October 28-30, 2009 at NEZU Museum, Tokyo, Japan, on page 83 provides the following explanation of the triple diamond symbol: "The pine bark is the form of the Diamonds, "Bishi", mon, seen from Nara period, found on cloth stored in the Shoso In, and used primarily by the Takeda family. The form of Bishi mon [similar to ours] is called "Chu Kage Matsukawa Bishi", (Middle Shaded Pine Bark Diamond)."
A combination of hatchet (usually an axe) and a triple diamond (Matsukawabishi) alludes to the Nō play Hachi-no-ki (ref: Iron tsuba. The works of the exhibition "Kurogane no hana", The Japanese Sword Museum, 2014; AND Sasano: Japanese Sword Guard Masterpieces from the Sasano Collection. By Sasano Masayuki. Part One. Published in Japan in 1994.TSU-0323. Ko-kinko yamagane tsuba with waves and rabbit motif.
Iron tsuba of round form with brown patina decorated with the design of a Buddhist temple bell (tsurigane) in openwork (sukashi), with details outlined in brass wire (sen-zōgan), the outer ring decorated with two rows of brass dots (ten-zōgan), and the bell details carved in sukidashi-bori as on kamakura-bori pieces.
Ōnin school. Unsigned. Late Muromachi period, 16th century. Dimensions: 88.8 x 88.3 x 3.0 mm. As per Merrily Baird, two legends are usually associated with the image of tsurigane, a large, suspended Buddhist bell: one is that of Dojo Temple (Dojo-ji), and the other is of Benkei stealing the tsurigane of Miidera Temple. Interestingly, this type of bell (tsurigane) is not described as a family crest (mon), while suzu and hansho bells are.TSU-0282: Ko-kinko yamagane tsuba with waves and rabbit motif.