Spartancrest

One going to auction now! https://www.jauce.com/auction/b1193004897 it looks a little older but probably still Edo? You know what I say "never just one!"

Two almost identical other than the nakago-ana: One in the Met. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/35193 what I find odd is the shape of the Met's example nakago-ana, too sharp for its age and little to no wear? https://eirakudo.shop/tosogu/tsuba/detail/324249/ a papered piece as Katchūshi I also see these on some auction sites - makes me think many are Edo revival pieces.

All aboard !

Coca, the Japanese daimyo drug Lords?

https://www.jauce.com/auction/t1229781619

A similar cloisonne guard selling at auction now : https://www.jauce.com/auction/x1229777805 starting at 150,000 yen. By the time fees are added in - this is approaching $1,000 USD

Well I got you all talking! Heck it was just a suggestion - I would like to buy a few of them myself! Not that that would be any guarantee they would survive forever. What is the consensus of splitting up collections? They never "go back together again" do they? + Curran - do you want me to name the prestigious Universities and Museums? There is a long list!

I did spot one cast copy and possibly two guards made for replica tachi mounts. The rest are looking OK and there are one or two I would like myself! Just a suggestion, but as we are really just temporary custodians of these things - any thought of donating them to a local museum? Along with the story of how they were found would add local value to them and keep them together. [Like I say just a suggestion]

Other patterns: https://www.jauce.com/auction/f1229523918 https://tsubashi.com/product/katchushi-style-tsuba/ https://tsubashi.com/product/signed-katchushi-style-tsuba/ and this one with no borders https://tsubashi.com/product/a-fine-saotome-tsuba/ [I am not confident with the sellers attribution ] - but he has found the ishime term - chirimen-amidayasuri

Hi Kin, welcome to NMB. Sorry to say I find a couple of "ODD" features with this tsuba. There is an impossible sword strike mark on the omote side above the hitsu and across the seppa-dai - - impossible because such a strike would need to cut longitudinally through the blade, unless the tsuba was struck whilst dismounted [In which case why would there be a defensive strike?] Also the hitsu is well outside the seppa-dai and would not serve the purpose of slotting a kozuka or kogai into the saya - unless the saya was massively thick. Combine this with the tagane-ato on both sides of the tsuba being identically placed, as a rule punch marks tend to be on one face with occasionally extra when one side is beaten too thin. The odd divots on the seppa-dai where the signature is engraved don't add up either. The indented pattern over the surface is a fast and sloppy way of trying to look like nanako. So for me it is a tourist piece as Jean has said or maybe a paperweight. I will keep searching and see if I can find others like it.

I think this is a type with "crepe ishime" - there is a proper term in Japanese but I don't have it handy. These seem to be from a school that specialized in this decoration, designs vary a lot but there are many examples where the piercing shifts position around the plate. I have been collecting images of these for some time and note there are two main styles - one with the seppa-dai and hitsu outlined and the other where the ishime is not "contained" Here are three with the same "gumbai" piercing design. If you can find another they make a great daisho! [My "daisho" with a different pierced design.]

Sorry no idea - Shoami Ito?

I like the Dote-mimi - I think Jean may be right about a revival piece, this one from the Edo era - no Dote-mimi though. Anyone know the plant the leaf represents? We still need a scientific non-invasive method to date iron. - Though even this may not be indicative of when the tsuba was fashioned from the iron - how we get around that would seem difficult. I guess you can test the patina age?? But what then if the piece has been cleaned back to bare metal? These questions keep us interested in the subject of tsuba and not having all the answers keeps our "little grey cells" active!

Good taste - one I would go for as well. - - what Mauro said! not a gazillion miles from this?

Hi Chris. Your squirrel tsuba appeared in 2024 in this thread - along with this image of an utsushi Another from this thread : With this image There is also a single squirrel design with papers listed here -https://matsukaze.thebase.in/items/8490153 And another with both ategane filled here https://www.touken-world.jp/search-sword-guard/art0002655/ and here with papers https://www.ayakashi.co.jp/items/83815405 I have seen a few tsuba with "Shoki on the bridge" as well, but they tend to be cast copies [Not yours] https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/396800258462 you can tell the design is Shoki because of his "Ken" type sword as opossed to Yoshitsune and Benkei on the bridge. There are rarely only "just one" of anything!