Ford Hallam

Sentoku and shinchu are quite different alloys. The lead content of shinchu is less then 0.5% and is merely a byproduct of the de-silverisation of copper. Small variations in zinc content will be unlikely to effect the patina colour, but surface corrosion might reduce the relative zinc concentration in the surface of the alloy. Wikipedia is not a reliable source of information on Japanese metalwork materials and technique

Shinchu is the Japanese term for brass ( specifically the Edo period alloy), brass is an alloy of copper and zinc. Typically Edo period brass/shinchu contains anywhere from 15 to 25% zinc. So yes, Steven is quite correct.

If memory serves the characters, oracle or bone script, are possibly references to the sacred mountains of China.

Well the usual Japanese word for acid etching is 食刻, shokkoku. I'm mistrustful of many of the fancy terms that are bandied about in tosogu circles, especially if it originates in Torigoe's writings. There are lots of such terms that in fact often betray a lack of understanding of basic metalwork processes and are more likely the fanciful, or poetic, imaginings of armchair experts. I'm not convinced that yakite (to burn or bake etc.) has anything to do with the actions of acids so yakite kasarashi strikes me as a misnomer. And yes, etching is a decorative technique, a pretty simple one actually, that I've used on occasion. I don't think the attribution was by the NBTHK, Rich was usually quite fastidious to note such things in his articles. I assume therefore this is his own assessment.

A similar tsuba which Rich Turner suggests is Shoami. https://richardturner.wordpress.com/2013/06/13/shoami-unryu-tsuba-%e6%ad%a3%e9%98%bf%e5%bc%a5%e9%9b%b2%e9%be%8d%e5%9b%b3%e9%90%94/ The Kamakura attribution seems very curious. These are etched whereas Kamakura bori are carved.

Undoubtably copper, pretty pure at that too. Technique and aesthetic feel strongly suggest Higo to me.

Hi Brian a soft clean brush and warm water/gentle soap will rarely be a problem. To be extra careful one could use an artists paintbrush, natural bristles, instead of a toothbrush. Boiling in distilled water is probably also ok for all metal pieces. But perhaps we ought to suggest that if any member are in doubt they simply ask for advice here and we can do our best to advise on a case by case basis.

I would caution against using an ultrasonic cleaner if there's any chance that there is gold uttori present. Some examples I've worked with have had a rosin residue in between the substrate and the gold foil. It's as yet unclear to be what exactly its function was , more research required, but an ultrasonic session might weaken the bond or worse.

Thanks everyone, for your kind appreciation. From my perspective projects like this are a sort of balancing act. I was given the original Motoharu piece as the inspiration and starting point. With this as the concrete model and wanting to make my version be linked I wanted to make some direct references in terms of design and approach but then with that established to take certain aspect further in my own way. The overall composition, the mood, stream, placement of the subject, the rabbit, were all matched with Motoharu's version. I started on thr back...and immediately got carried away with the stream. Where Motoharu chose merely to delineate it with a few chiselled lines I decided to carve the entire surface of the stream to provided a more expressive contrast between the flowing water and the soft stony 'as forged' surface of the plate. This juxtaposition is as aspect of the work that is very important to me and one I find very expressive. It's a lot more work but, for me, the time and effort are irrelevant in pursuit of a feeling I'm trying to evoke. I did a bit of 'sketching' with pen and chisels to get a sense of how the flowers and foliage were done in the first tsuba so that when I emulated this part if the design my take on it would be reasonably informed by Motoharu but also reflect a little of my own sensibilities. The silver and gold flowers are, I think, a more personal approach, and certainly the actual inlay technique is a method I may have recently 'invented' without any clues from the past. But this is how it always was, I suspect, the development or technique and methods precisely to express a particular aesthetic or feeling. The mood, well that started off pretty conventionally, fine nunome-zogan on a very thinly relieved moon amid delicately scribed lines outlining and suggesting the shifting qualities of the clouds. Then I got carried away again...I polished through the silver to show the fine cross-hatching and create a more mottled moon surface...and then I got silly and polished more carefully to suggest a little leaping rabbit in the moon's surface. And then the rabbit. The test version I did wasn’t really a practice to copy Motoharu but rather a way for me to properly understand what and how he’d approached his carving. Having done that I felt comfortable in developing my own rabbit expression. I created a the pose to capture certain rabbit qualities, the tilt of the head, the ears, etc, all deliberately settled on so as the give my rabbit a particular attitude and ‘expression’. I didn’t sell my practice pieces, but in this case a lady in Germany did ask if I would so I sent it to her as a gift. It’s now beautifully framed on some suitable wrapping paper and in her new baby’s bedroom. That makes me smile. The decision the raise the head and one ear above the ground was quite pragmatic, I wanted more 3 dimensionality and structure in my piece. And I do enjoy that sort of technical challenge in service of an aesthetic device. We’ve also filmed a bit of a post production look at the tsuba, with my thoughts about what I did. This will be edited and on-line shortly. I’ll post a link here when it is for this of you who are not yet bored .

Hi Tim, Steve, oops, sorry, I didn't quite pick up on the question about the pairing. It does seem to be a relatively late amalgamation, earlier references are inevitably quite distinct. And I share your 'concern' about the 'triteness' of the terms. It's all far too nuanced to be reduced to a design/lifestyle buzz word. My feeling is that wabi (astringency, austerity, melancholy) is far older, more philosophical and initially more concerned with literature. Whereas sabi (rust, literal....patina, literal and metaphorical) has a sense of a more material expression, a bit like the surface appearance of the abstract wabi austerity, sabi is the skin to wabi, to make it more apparent perhaps. Is the pairing, the addition of sabi, almost as an adjective to wabi, reflective of the popularisation of the wabi aesthetic beyond the more cultured and refined aesthetes of the tea ceremony and literary circles? Certainly, even later 19th century writers, when writing about literature and theatre seem to not need to use sabi. What this makes me feel sometimes is that just because and object exhibits an overtly sabi exterior is doesn't automatically follow that the object or 'art' does in fact embody or express wabi also.

Hi Tim To be brutal I found Koren's book a bit too simplistic and 'designer' focussed. In fact there were many books and essays on the topic long before his. If he did consult with Japanese designer colleagues that would explain is limited conception I imagine. This on-line encyclopedia created by Stanford University pretty much provides a very erudite and comprehensive introduction to the main elements of Japanese aesthetic including wabi and sabi. I think it worth considering that while wabi and sabi are unquestionably central in resect to informing Japanese aesthetics these concepts or aspects don't exist or are expressed in isolation from the other elements of the Japanese aesthetic canon.

Stephen everyone else can follow my link to see it. Only you are unable to see my films.... because you've been a bad boy.

ok, I've made that film public now, so anyone can see it...even if they're too tight to offer the price of a cup of coffee for this sort of quality content. 'Cos everything should be free on the internet and I have an obligation to freely share all I've learned in 40 years as a professional craftsman. here's direct link. But seriously; If you're at all interesting to learning about the finer points of refined metalworking and the subtleties of classical Japanese metalwork, you'll find an unparalleled collection of films on both technical and the aesthetic aspects of the tradition on my subscription channel. Join us, for only as little as $5 a month and help grow the world's first such resource. https://www.patreon.com/FordHallam Thanks.

Well the wolf was traditionally regarded as a messenger of the Kami in Shinto. It was also said to protect farmers crops, and there are still today many shines dedicated to the wolf, Okami. Paul, I'm pretty sure the lean wolf on a battle field is a haiku. Basho, as one example, was no fan of the military dictatorship so it might have been a form of criticism of the Bakufu , given that many, if not most, of the more artistic tsuba of the Edo period were made by the machibori and for non-samurai clientele. Government mismanagement resulted in frequent rice and grain shortages and famine during the Edo period so hungry wolves would still have been a very potent symbol and critique of that sort of failure.

Henry, I think the lean wolf motif is a reference to the desolate plains of Musashino, after battle.. Lots of nibbles for hungry wolves. Wild animals are the only creatures that benifit from battle. It looks to me to be a really lovely carving, I'd love to see more. Actually I've been wanting to do this theme myself for some time.

John It's a pity you've chosen to take this all so personally and that you have now resorted to insulting those who disagree with the opinions you had hoped for. The simple fact is you asked for opinions. Most of those here you don't like. That's the nature of opinion. Your rebuttal is to reference a number of people who may or may not have the appropriate knowledge and understanding, or motive, to give you a valid opinion. I, at least, tried to provide some rationale for my opinion while you validate those you like and heard elsewhere simply by simply claiming those individuals have looked at sword stuff for ages so therefore are more reliable. Appealing to authority, your self selected experts, proves nothing without reasoning. No one is infallible and in my view any opinion offered without reasoning is of questionable value. Your parting line is actually quite amusing, egotistical and crude ( and downright rude) though it is.

I should probably let this dead dog lie but these damn thoughts, based on actual stuff I've researched, just wont stop popping up in my mind. I'm a bit perturbed at the willingness of some in our community to ascribe unorthodox and shoddy work to amateur or hobby workers....of the Edo period. The first, and most obvious question I would ask is what denotes crap work of the Edo period as opposed to crap contemporary work? But more seriously, the notion that back then anyone could or would, as we blithely do today, simply have a go at a craft or art without seeking professional instruction is, from everything I've read, simply a bit too far fetched. The reality, as attested to by numerous city guide books to art and craft teachers in all sorts of disciplines and including many major names, is that no-one was a self taught tinkerer. What this means, especially in the Japanese Edo period, is that students followed faithfully the methods and styles of their teachers. This was simply integral to the very social fabric of Edo period Japan. Of course there were always those iconoclastic and brilliant individuals who broke the mould but every one of them did their time learning the ground rules under established masters. And this is evident even in the most avant garde work they subsequently produced. This present set of fittings under discussion is a failure of technique. To focus on one detail....the maker lacked the skill to engrave the curving lines that convention dictates defines breaking waves. So he finds a 'work around', it's ugly and does nothing to convey the flow and swell of waves but it's a pattern of sorts. He made a stamp and simply stamped little steps of parallel lines on the crude wave forms as a substitute for proper engraved lines. It fails as an artistic device and looks very odd within the context to classical metalwork. There are some areas that seem to have been engraved but there the lines seem to break and restart at awkward angles. For me, the impression I get is that whoever made this lacked not just the level of skill required to do a convincing Edo period quality job but also didn't fully understand exactly how to go about creating the needed effects efficiently. As I pointed out initially, the nanako is very poor. The dragons are way below average in quality and the waves, as I've new added, are a mess. Why should these pieces be of any further consideration, other that as a warning I suppose, with reference to the sorts of tosogu we really ought to be studying? Naturally this is merely only my opinion. Everyone is perfectly able to make up their own mind on the matter and spend money on whatever they please. But opinions were asked for so I will reinforce mine in the face of what I see is wooly thinking and perhaps an unwillingness to be seen as the bad cop. But I care about this subject and I'm concerned about a creeping decline to standards of appreciation and appraisal.

I will still stand by my initial observations and opinion.

better 'hot stamps'

That's a lovely tsuba, right up my street.

I find that the difficulty is trying to capture both colour and texture in the same image. I think it may actually be impossible. For texture I like an early morning or late afternoon natural raking light. And images taken at a shallow angle too.

Hi Steven, sorry, I didn't mean to imply you were . I suppose what I was suggesting is that subsequent research has been of a much less insightful or coherent character. The usual pointless exercise seems to be the random analysis of various 'out of context' bits of tosugu to learn what they're made of.

Florian, no problem on my part. It is a minefield of invention actually. What seems to have happened at the end of the 19th century is that a handful of Japanese collectors fancied themselves as scholars and created the history of tosogu to provide a sort of scholarly framework to legitimise their appreciation of tsuba and fittings. In fact this was pretty much usual practice among the Europe aristocracy in relation to art collecting, until a slightly more objective creature, the professional art scholar and connoisseur evolved. It often seems to me that the background history of much of tosogu, especially the earliest works, suffers from this initial amateur 'creativity.' And yes, shinchu and sentoku are two very different alloys. Shinchu is brass made with metallic zinc, Brass made before that development, using calamine (the zinc mineral), is correctly called Chuseki. Sentoku is a very late adaptation of the Chinese alloy Xuande bronze ( same kanji to write both btw) however analysis of late 19th cent. Japanese sentoku is quite different to the Chinese Xuande.

Steven, i'd go much further and say, that while this is from 40 years ago it's still the most detailed and intelligent scientific research done in this field to date, imo. Cyril Stanley Smith is well worth reading, and you'll find quite a bit on Amazon.