Spartancrest

https://www.czernys.com/catalogues/

https://www.jauce.com/auction/v1172904922 back again from 19th April 2022 - [https://www.jauce.com/auction/f1048239985] where it sold for nearly half the new asking price. https://www.jauce.com/auction/d1216400857 sword rack/Kake https://www.jauce.com/auction/c1215355128

I can see where the Yagyu vibe comes from - Yagu often have that half melted [yakite] look to them. But I don't know enough to say it is.

Tanaka also seem to have a predominance of Kuchi-beni (口紅) [though not all]

These are often described as "Abalone" design most are not signed and as you already speculate, a signature by Nobuie is likely gimei. The tsuba is featured in the movie "Ichi" - blind swordswoman 2008, image is poor resolution [how is that for trivia ] https://www.ebay.com/itm/296923445362

Happened to me years back, sword blade way out of polish [may have had one more polish left in it and some minor chips] but the tsuba was very fine nanako in iron with lined udenuki-ana. Stripped the tsuba off and sold the blade for the overall price I had paid. $800 from memory - I still love the tsuba. I guess my point is the same as Curren's - sometimes the fittings are superior to the blade and may never have been part of the "original" Koshirae.

Thank you all very much for your help - This truly is a weird guard [I have shown it long ago] It has two "prongs?" that project out in front like european sword breakers - just weird, so right up my alley

Can anyone translate the mei? Many thanks in advance.

Welcome Ryan. Number one - tentatively [poor image] Ko-kinko - Two - obviously sukashi but not sure of the school. It is "tsuba" for both single and multiple tsuba. Interesting time warp back to 2013 - how do I get a ticket?

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/205749037590 Something similar? The one you are looking at is cheaper and better in my opinion - no idea what the theme is but another in Sasano's book 212. page 272 says Shimizu and described as "Butterflies"? [It is not particularly close in design though]

One thing missing from most Soten tsuba battle scenes - the lack of blood splatter!

Kosyu Hikone Jyu Mogarashi Nyudo SOTEN Sei Goshu/Kosyu Hikone Ju (江州彦根住): "Resident of Hikone, Omi Province (Goshu)". Mogarashi Nyudo Soten Sei (藻柄子入道宗典製): "Made by Mogarashi Nyudo Soten".

Hi Will, welcome to the forum. Could you give us some dimensions of your guard? This design seems to be difficult to find, so not common, but I found something with a rim design with more folded or carved "lobes" in Greville Cooke's "Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery Tsuba Collection V2" Not the same school I believe, as yours looks much thicker. I have a feeling I have seen another somewhere but I have a lot of books to search!

Hi Will, I found this one in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. More elaborate but has some of the features to yours. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/29973 The hitsu shapes on yours are interesting, I think they may represent gourds like on this one.

Damon I have seen a few "collaborative" decorated tsuba - But not signed in this way. The ones I have seen have had inlay work with a signed plaque beside each piece of inlay. Would you believe there is a collaboration of SEVEN artist on one tsuba? Walters Art Museum 51.410 https://art.thewalters.org/object/51.410/ There was another collaborative tsuba here: https://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2005/Japanese-and-korean-works-of-art-l05860/lot.852.html