Myers

A little better, I'm still working on the lighting.

When my father [a professional soldier] tells me its a sword hilt, its a sword hilt. I obviously now know its a WAKIZASHI, EDO period iron TSUBA with TAKABORI execution. Thanks to your help. P.A. Also! A new camera with macro mode is on the way. Ergo; much better pictures are on the way [!?!].

I must mention that your information is of paramount interest. This tsuba has been around my entire life. The only thing I ever knew was that it is some type of Japanese sword hilt. The figures [shoki and Oni] have always been a curiousity. Your help solved a 60 year old mystery, very satisfying and thanks. Your specifications and identifications have given me a basis to mine more information from the web. It is curious that so many are offered for sale with minimal background. Catalogue descriptions seem brief, even tsubas of considerable value. When I have occasion to sell a flintlock rifle, it must be described in minute detail, in addition to multiple photos. It seems obvious that this WAKIZASHI size tsuba is EDO period. That is a big span of time. Is their any way to determine [guess?] a more specific age? P.A.

Amida yasuri are on both sides. Radial design, The rain crosses them. The relief figures end just before the edge. The thickness of the edge is uniform the entire circumference. The edge also appears to be hammered. From the shakey hand of P.A. Myers, Auburn CA

This has been in the family for 100+ years, so I am sure nothing about it is recent. I put it in a 'special' place about 20 years ago and have been looking for it ever since. I have scoured the web to identify it to no avail. I learned that some tsubas can never be positively indentified. Soooooo, here it is. The naturally illuminated pictures approximate the correct color. The flash pictures show the detail better, but still the amida yasuri is barely visible. Amida yasuri are on both sides. The inlays seem to be copper and gold. The relief figures are quite finely detailed. 2 7/8 X 1/8 My Sony digital camera is almost as old as the tsuba so the pictures could be better. A big improvement over charcoal rubbings. Close examination does not reveal a signature or characters of any kind. It has not been cleaned or tampered with at least in the last 100 years. What might I have? Thank You .