Spartancrest

This is what passes for a tsuba on Yahoo /Jauce - and probably some escutcheon salesman's catalogue! Who's a pretty boy then? https://www.jauce.com/auction/u1152194818 Hey you get a free Kiri box with it Reminds me of these machine dial plates that were sold as "tsuba" [I wonder if they came from some WWII aircraft dial? - would at least have some story value!]

From Markus Sesko's book "Encyclopedia of Japanese Swords" pages 315 - 316 nanako (魚子) – Nanako means literally “roe.” In earlier times, many different characters were used for nanako, like (魶子), (七子), (粟子), or (鉾子) but these passed out of use. Nanako was frequently applied by specialized craftsmen, the so-called nanako-uchi (魚子打ち) or nanako-maki (魚子蒔き). According to the Japanese nomenclature, nanako is “beaten” (utsu, 打つ) or “sown” (maku, 蒔 く ). For this, specially made nanako chisels (nanako-tagane, 魚子鏨) were used. According to the arrangement of the “grain,” we know different terms for nanako surfaces, like Tatsuta-nanako (竜田魚子, horizontal nanako which resembles the Tatsuta-gawa [竜田川] in Nara), gunome-nanako (互の目魚子, wavy nanako), daimyō-shima-nanako (大名縞魚子, nanako where between each row of grain a polished row is applied), or shaka-nanako (釈迦魚子, very coarse nanako). Nanako was mostly applied to fittings made of shakudō and sometimes also to shibuichi and suaka surfaces, and we know examples by Tanaka Kiyotoshi (田中清寿) who applied nanako also to iron. As you can see there are single or multiple punches that were used.

Just carrying on from the previous post I just noticed a "new" fake been added to the huge list! Though the colours are not even close to what you would expect, the design is one that many of us are familiar with [I call it the "Tea room window"] You can compare the design to the numerous other "real" examples. The makers of the fake have done a pretty good job of the design - and a bloody awful job of the paint work!

Just a smaller list from Bonhams of the tsuba [and a few other things] https://www.bonhams..../search/?query=tsuba For me the most telling aspect of spotting fakes is they tend to turn up in significant numbers, but you have to spread your searches over a lot of sites and need a good memory for recurring "faces". The makers of these things can also get very creative and issue several colour types or even make them in different alloys - they then hope you will buy the other version because it can't be a fake if it is different can it? [Answer: Oh yes it can!] These examples below should be obvious to anyone [even the visually handicapped! ] Also you should never judge a tsuba by the signature - especially when it is cast in! Ps. these are shockers in more ways than one!

I haven't found an identical design yet . . . Could you show the other side of the guard? Or is it identical? You might get more responses if it was posted over on the Tosogu threads where the "tsuba people" hangout. I was toying with the idea it might be Sanmai construction but the raised seppa-dai would probably rule that out. I think the guard is not modern as such but might date back to pre-war?

A lot of movie names coming up!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:花菱_Hanabishi.png This is only one of many designs used as a Kamon - Family crest. Not at all sure this is the correct one used on your tsuba. Pity about the damage to the very fine elements in the Mon design, one almost completely gone. It is said that there are 20,000 to 30,000 types of Japanese family crests!

I think the image of Florian's is Myoga the flower buds are zig-zag up the stalk not side by side like the image on the link.

https://www.metmuseu...lection/search/26589

ebay doesn't do too badly either! https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/175486513381 Justin good idea of yours when starting on something new to ask , there are a lot of people who can help on this forum. [We have had years of making mistakes - so you don't need to ] The Etsy/ebay fakes are likely based on examples like these: https://www.metmuseu...lection/search/25709 https://art.thewalte...uardian-at-a-temple/ You can get the fake straight from Japan - https://www.jauce.com/auction/q1132475823 Cheaper than ebay or Etsy - but still not worth the money!

FAKE MODERN - CAST = All the things you don't want to hear, sorry. https://www.ebay.com/itm/156367630966 https://www.etsy.com...amurai?gpla=1&gao=1&

Oh Piers! Which side of the Atlantic do you follow? Dictionary: Definitions from Oxford Languages fanny /ˈfani/ noun 1. vulgar slang•British a woman's genitals. 2. informal•North American a person's buttocks. 3. verb informal•British mess around and waste time. "they were fannying about in the street"

The Edward Wrangham Collection of Japanese Art Part I Bonhams auction 9 November 2010 https://www.bonhams....school-19th-century/ Sold for £38,400 inc. premium https://www.bonhams....-kozan-19th-century/ Sold for £1,680 inc. premium

Uchiwa and https://www.jauce.com/auction/o1128816608 https://www.jauce.com/auction/m1099761508 https://www.jauce.com/auction/t1150611419 https://www.jauce.com/auction/h1136010459

Mine are broken fans - and the nunome has all disappeared!

I will double up the crabs

One just like it sold a week ago - small world! Is anything truly unique? https://www.jauce.com/auction/s1149942830

They should have named that team the "Pensioner brigade". Great actors in a not so great movie. [ the youngsters would never have seen it]

I am going to start charging finders fees! The one I have on record could be the one you now have? https://www.easylive...t-carpets-ru-lot-28/ Auction Date: 12th Nov 2022 No dimensions.

Gendai? see Post August 17, 2022

There is a similar Wangata in the Ashmolean museum shallower cup and two piercings later filled with silver. Two suhama ("sand-banks", three-lobed devices forming the badge of the Sanada) EAX.10158 http://jameelcentre....ection/7/10237/10344 I like the vermillion red lacquer on the ura. [PS good luck finding the ura image on-line. Why do museums like to hide things?]

I like the London sale 2014 better than the ebay one.

No way do I know even 10% Hizen for sure. Well 90% Check the outline of the seppa-dai - pretty close style. At first sight that Kappa and Oni has a lot of Jakushi influence to it. The way the gold nunome looks like a rubbed wash. but Jakushi don't have such an extensive range of colour inlay and the seppa-dai are not "highlighted" or raised as far as I know? Perhaps the image Jake has is a little harder to make out the details.

Ebay sale? https://www.ebay.com/itm/156363421734 I have seen the twisted wire inlay "vines" before on a few tsuba but I can't track down those images at the moment - not much help with the signature. Nobumitsu (written: 信光) is a masculine Japanese given name. The kanji look pretty close to me. PS. Mercari has it at half the price of ebay https://jp.mercari.com/item/m48220885862 And please Cornelius saw it first!

1st generation 1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 2nd generation 2, 4, 9, 10