Spartancrest

https://www.ebay.com/itm/405251827826 A nice big rat on this one Justin. https://www.ebay.com/itm/387696602359 Pretty - - pretty expensive! https://www.jauce.com/auction/o1049691586 https://www.jauce.com/auction/c1138872161 https://www.jauce.com/auction/x1173683901 https://www.jauce.com/auction/1159227877 https://www.jauce.com/auction/m1073156381 a bit rough!

I think you mean Gold MENUKI ? [The spelling always gets me a bit confused at times too ] [come to that I am confused most of the time!] Very nice tsuba by the way - excellent detail. Not sure the other fittings actually match but they all seem good quality - I even like the seppa !

https://www.gazette-drouot.com/en/lots/28349420-Japan-meiji-period-1868--- You really need to look but there is a rat in the pumpkin on this one. One of mine - either the rats are huge or the rice bales are very small? Carved wood grain Ji - I never could work out why the rats had multicolured fur? Pets?

Poncetton book ISBN data: https://www.amazon.com.au/s?k=ISBN%3A+9798349900983&i=stripbooks&crid=150CY31FWQS2G&sprefix=isbn+9798349900983%2Cstripbooks%2C767&ref=nb_sb_noss Why they show the back cover eludes me! https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?cm_sp=SearchF-_-NullResults-_-Results&isbn=9798349900983&kn=9798349900983 &sts=t shipping fee to Australia is ridiculous! I can get the soft cover with shipping to the US for $30 AUD and the hardcover for $42 AUD Softcover ISBN: 9798349900983 Hardcover, ImageWrap ISBN: 9798349900969 An original in French: https://www.abebooks.co.uk/Gardes-Sabre-Japonaises-PONCETTON-Francois-Albert/30105846993/bd

Not only itomaki but many other jagged shapes would be clothes shredders. Most would be because their rims were deliberately removed. [I have images of uncut versions of all of these]

https://soryu.pl/products/iron-sukashi-kanayama-school-tsuba-with-nbthk-hozon-tosogu-takeda-clan-kamon no kozuka hitsu-ana either. tiny image but with both hitsu-ana Christies had one for GBP 562 https://www.christies.com/lot/lot-5679423 https://auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/c1183203600 the image from Sasano is not the same guard. Sasano's dimensions are 70.5 mm diam. x 4.8 mm > 4.5 mm [rim to seppa-dai] The auction piece is 75 mm x 74 mm x 5.2 mm so a little larger - possibly a daisho to Sasano's? Page 139 of the gold book. No relevance but they are still making copies - https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/1664523308/samurai-sword-iron-tsuba-and-fuchi I think the guard can stand on its own merits - the cut hitsu is part of its history, don't try to make it a copy of a guard just because someone in an advert is try to sell it as something it is not. JMHO

https://collections.mfa.org/objects/27594 One of the nicest rats you will ever see. One for a rainy day https://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/explore/collection/work/54285/ https://www.gazette-drouot.com/en/lots/28349416-Japan-middle-edo-period--- https://www.gazette-drouot.com/en/lots/28349421-Japan-edo-period-1603---- https://www.lot-art.com/auction-lots/HIROCHIKA-SUKASHI-UCHIKOSHI-SCHOOL-RATS-TSUBA/48-hirochika_sukashi-29.11.19-zacke also https://www.kollerauktionen.ch/en/-6104_467391.html?RecPos=4 these are mice. This mouse guard has appeared in a few early articles, by well known collectors. Some more rat/mice info here.

https://auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/d1184059419

This is a modern "Ninja" Shuriken - how are you going to throw it if it is on a sword? And just how much damage will a 5mm point do? Would this shape be considered "Itomaki"?

As good a guess as any. This one from another thread with attribution of Aizu-Shōami - obviously not the same design but the technique and raised inlays are similar - As is often said: When in doubt "Shoami" and sometimes it is right! From the Walters Art Museum - looks more like a mouse - or that is a really big chilly! No attribution given.

Listed the Poncetton book in two formats - Soft and Hardcover, I am yet to find the ISBN codes but the title will show up in a search in a few days. 106 pages. Please be aware the books are sold through the distributors at a much inflated price and ebay is not the cheapest by any means! PM if you want a cheaper option.

Well a good spot to drop a great article from the late/great Gary Montgomery. https://www.tsukamaki.net/PDF/gary_montgomery01.pdf He could have gone down the wrong path - but chose the even "wronger" one

https://tsubaka.ru/7_en.htm one extreme to another https://www.ebay.com/itm/326302731381 Onin Muromachi - to - Papered to Meiji period. Grey Doffin had one listed as Tosho - https://japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/tsuba-kodogu/t250-tosho-tsuba-with-amida-yasuri/ a little more complex sukashi. I think it is a mid Edo piece possibly in a "revivalist" pattern - You will notice the rays extend right through the seppa-dai not like Justins piece that has the seppa-dai un-carved which I think makes his late Edo? Very hard to date a style that persisted for 400 years.

Kogai can be very small - but you are right there is a big size difference with the hitsu. The small one has some features of very early guards, the square edges and thin narrow profile. Perhaps the guard is very old and was decorated later? Under that thin layer of rust is a pretty guard waiting to show off again!

I think these are called "Tama" or flaming jewels. Top row second from the left on the takarabune design image. These "jewels" are often seen on guards where dragons are either holding or reaching for the jewel/pearl of wisdom. $150 is not too bad a price! Heck fakes are often more than that!

Welcome Justin. Love it! The condition is a little rough [just the way I like them] the rat is sitting on Daikoku-ten's mallet/hammer. Daikoku is the god of wealth and one of the Seven Lucky Gods (Shichi-fuku-jin). His companions are rats or mice. No doubt in my mind the guard is genuine but dating is difficult to be precise - Mid to late Edo? Grab yourself a piece of bone or ivory/antler if you can get it and you can remove any active rust - stay clear of the inlay. I see it was an ebay purchase? I hope you got it at a good price Your guard has two symbols from the Takarabune - Treasure ship https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takarabune How is the other side?

From Cornell University - Quadrifoil Ken tsuba ca. 17th century ------ Oh if we could only prove it! Also from Cornell University - Tsuba with deer and maple leaves Unidentified artist The two cast guards show a little time displacement - between "crap" and "rusty crap" but they still take up space in a museum!

This one has even been mounted by the look of the nakago-ana and the opening price is "more realistic" even for a paperweight. https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/306292562072 it is pretty crude.

My two cents worth = Hizen. The shape of the seppa-dai and the fact the hitsu were made as part of the design suggests to me it was made in Japan but with the Chinese/Namban influence. ie. Hizen style. Have a look at the Yagami school. I can't help with the mei.

Giordy a set here made into candle holders. https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/1800s-export-tsuba-ishiguro-masaaki-415584528 https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/exceptional-Japanese-bronze-tsuba-3885860381 The cast in signature is Masaaki Ishiguro but that means nothing in this case. Have fun. Kind regards

Mass produced "reproduction" ie. cast fake. The biggest give away is the nakago-ana [tang hole] but in reality for most of us with years of seeing these, it is just how commonly they turn up. They can come either with applied colour or just a darkened metal and there are others in the "set" - same sort of nakago-ana. You can buy the "set" https://www.supeinnihonto.com/product/aorigata-daisho-set-tsuba/ but please don't! Not at this price 950 € Over a thousand dollars US. It Comes with certificate of SupeinNihonto. ! Well the certificate is not worth the ink it was printed with and the description of "gold inlays" is also a joke - if any gold was used it is overlay!!! There is even a more modern copy of a copy - the nakago-ana is better but still it is a copy of the same design. https://teraasekeskus.com/tuote/ryumon-raijin-tsuba/?lang=en https://teraasekeskus.com/tuote/ryumon-raijin-tsuba/?lang=en https://www.ebay.com/itm/315774157914 https://www.ebay.com/itm/356441228047 These are paperweights at best

https://www.jauce.com/auction/p1182666197 A rather "primitive" form of 'hot stamp' decoration likely to do with Tempo type guards? The fukurin added much later to dress the design up. There tends to be a lot with this Chrysanthemum or star punch design - very irregular and there is not a lot of consistency with the punch depths. Gives you the impression of somewhat hurried manufacture. Early Edo ? Another https://www.ebay.com/itm/405453746331 Close design but without the added fukurin [asking price is a little high in my opinion ] Similar attached to a Wakizashi here. https://www.paulbert-serpette.com/en/catalog/categories/ancient-weapons/Japanese-sword-wakisashi-Japan-edo-period-1603-1868-0 Reddit has some orientation problem! Hope this gives you something as a reference.

Image from Curren's comment in this old thread - https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/32234-opinions-on-tsuba/ I believe any guard design found in published works is wide open to be copied for modern forgeries. They even fake brand new designs!

Hello Dave. Not exactly on topic - but ... Check this Metropolitan Museum of Art image an almost identical guard minus the slot. - https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/28458 Copy right image - why? A number of similar images over on this thread