Bugyotsuji

US dollars? Wakizashi, Echizen, from Seki, C. 延宝 1673-81, with NTHK papers, you didn't pay too much.

Very punny, Mauro! The Japanese seem to love this kind of double-entendre. The cry 勝負 Shobu, "victory or death!" is also conjured up by 菖蒲 shobu, iris leaves.

Hi John. Thanks for posing a good question. I have seen these before but never really stopped to think too deeply about them. The way they are constructed reminds me of lathe and drill work of Victorian times, especially pomanders and some chess pieces. The shape is a hyotan (gourd), and the way the string is attached round the waist of the hourglass shape is one of the exceptions we find in Netsuke which more often than not attach through himotoshi holes. These hyotan Netsuke were made of various materials. I still have one in ivory, one in Edo 'bidoro' glass and another made of pine wood, though a rather attractive brass version managed to escape. From the sharp edging of the screw, my feeling is that it is a pomander that has been brought into service as a Netsuke, but I would not like to try and pin down where it was made. I have an ojime somewhere created in the same way. The material is another question. The base looks to be a separate piece that has been screwed or glued in place to cap off the bottom hole. Is there a corresponding piece at the top? Could it be whale bone?

By the way, 三角 'Sankaku' means three facets, (triangle cross-section). You can find this kind of yari blade with equilateral facets, or isosceles, i.e. one larger flat side.

Just one possibility, Roman, even if others laugh hysterically, so here goes. Many smiths moved to northwest Kyūshū in the 1590s to make spears for the military units gathering there for the Korean invasions. Since Christian symbolism was outlawed, one way of adding talismanic power plus ‘deniability’ was by incorporating a 十 cross into what looks like a production number with 十 ten in it. I have a Kumamoto Castle Hosokawa gun for example, covered in numbers, but each series seems to contain at least one 10, …and we know the Hosokawa were Christians, even if not openly. Just a romantic theory for the pot, Roman, but we love the romance of these things!

What I honestly think is that even where it is ‘wrong’ in some detail, it gives you a hell of a lot of background information, plus a warm fuzzy feeling, as if that world is close and familiar. It also encourages further study in a positive way.

Nice tsuba ! (There seem to be other, older dings and scratches from before, so maybe things can be toned down somewhat.)

Been there, done that, and it’s the worst feeling. (At least you are not blaming yourself though.) Feel for you! Lesson to us all to request careful packaging, in advance of shipment.

Yes, but not yet all of it perfectly. (Most unusual to have the story down the mimi sides.)

Good job! No-one would spot that, I bet. Nice invisible rivets too! We only know your secret because you have told us!

Well Jean, now you have poised two or three very good questions. A couple of years back I translated some research done on Japanese armo(u)r. A line in a written record from about 1570 caught my eye, where the writer mentions visiting an armor workshop where the overwhelming impression was workers drilling holes in metal. As I recall, it specifically mentioned them working with 錐 ‘Kiri’, which is not a punch. If anyone knows more detail about this, I too would be interested to learn. So… Q.1. Were the holes in armor plates drilled or punched?

Drilling in iron went back, way back to the beginnings of Japan time, for kabuto ‘hoshi’ rivets. Some armorers, as we know, produced tsuba too, and some went on to specialize in them. I am imagining a time when hand- or foot-driven drilling technique moved for whatever reason over into the tsuba world. And Nakago were of even thicker iron, closer to tsuba thickness. ‘Random’ may be overstating it, but playful it certainly must have been, from the imagination through the planning into the execution. Some of the examples above allow your brain to flip-flop flash between positive and negative sukashi, in a “Now you see it, now you don’t” cameo.

Not wishing to prove controversial, with added apologies for the side-stepping, but here is an example of a Netsuke demonstrating (in my opinion) the use of a drill to create a pattern or design. Was there a period when this kind of work was fashionable, I wonder, in which the actual meaning of the design was incidental or even secondary?

I have found two or three artisans who signed Joryū, but the sole book I rely on here does not mention the name Masanao. Any luck your end?

如柳正直 Joryū Masanao (Alternative reading Nyoryū?)

Sadly John, unsigned.

Still have not reached the Chinese New Year, so allow me to add an iron Tantō/wakizashi tsuba with a golden dragon weaving through the clouds. The rust looked active, so today I finally sat down to clean it up. First time I have given this tsuba a serious look, as it was just kicking its heels in the odd tsuba box. and the other side of the cloud…

Not sure if I ever posted this tsurumaru with three inomé…(?)

Crisscross Nanako effect.

Hmmm… if not, try Seki, Kanesada. 関　兼定

Today in a pile of old Japanese armor related bits I spotted a small plastic bag containing a lead ball wrapped in paper. Pretty sure this was a pre-patched ball. Not mine, but I took a quick photo while I had the chance.

ホ actually reads ‘ho’ with a short ‘o’ sound, like blowing quickly on a glasses lens. What it means is another question, but it could be related to which section of the army it was for. In Kokura, hosting a large army barracks, Ho could have stood for Hoheitai 歩兵隊, infantry. Ki stood for Kiheitai 騎兵隊, originally cavalry but denoting motorized armored troops, and ホウ Hō with a long sound Hōheitai 砲兵隊, or artillery forces. (Not definitive, but just throwing this into the pot for consideration)

For years on this forum no one (hardly ever) used the red down-vote button. The first time I saw it not too long ago it was actually shocking, that someone had not bothered to speak or reason against a position. It seemed so harsh and point-blank. Suddenly it has become commonplace here, for whatever reason.

Shoot with the tip of the Nakago facing towards us, and the inscription will be the right way up! PS At first glance with a cricked neck, it looks like part of a date.

Coins and tsuba both start with a metal pancake. Both are fascinating objects that can transport you backwards in time. An artisan once told me that a quality iron plate for a tsuba might cost US $250 today, even in its raw state. Tsuba are larger and more tactile in the hand, allowing you to connect with the maker and sometimes the user(s). Each Tsuba holds little clues, apart from any inscriptions on it, and part of the allure (besides the cameo-like aesthetics) is the hunt for the story behind it. Hard, indeed, but that in itself can add interest, sometimes taking years to narrow down. In some cases you may find an exact date (if a recorded smith added his/her age, for example), but in many cases smith lists will record their place of work (eg Edo) and rough working years (eg Bunsei). Some will remain a puzzle, but you can always consult people and solicit opinions to help narrow it down, if you like it enough. You will find that tsuba collectors may have found a particular niche. One of my friends for example only collects Bizen Suruga. Some are more broad, liking Edo soft metal, others iron. Horses for courses applies! (General thoughts, maybe echoing some posts of others above…)