Curran

Going twice. Will give it another 24 hrs.

Muromachi or early Momoyana example.

Square or rectangular hitsu are not uncommon. This is a generalization, but they were mostly seen on 1500s tsuba. Then there were some Revival or Retro stretches during the Edo period where they'd come back into fashion for some tsuba and koshirae. Show us a picture, when you have time.

I don't know. It is not any easily recognizable metal. They've been patina treated in a strange way giving a f'ugly molting color. Given the patina treatment, I would guess they are copper. There would be a total of 6 per side to knock out. It is definitely meant to tart up the tsuba. --- Nothing precious like gold or silver. ---Nothing historical like certain type of lead or pewter plugs.

In 30 years of collecting, I don't know if I have every knocked out a plug from the kozuka or kogai ana. Anyone know how it is done safely? I'd been thinking about buying an iron tsuba with some very ugly plugs (probably early 20th century add ons to make it attractive to westerners). It is a kodai tsuba, from late in the school. Ie. Not worth really sending off to an expert. Any advice or instructions?

I've been at it a long time. Along a long enough timeline...

I love it when that happens. It has happened to me a few times, at least twice to tsuba I sold on before finding it published. Tosogu classroom: I need to get Vol 4 soon.

Well, I braced myself for what might open upon clicking that link. It was still worse than I imagined. I'm not sure if it needs a parental advisory. I think not. Still, certain things cannot be unseen.

Going once.....

A special opportunity came up, so I am cutting prices on #1 Large thin ex-Museum Ko-Shoami to $1000 and #2 Matsukawa Owari to $675. Price cut for 3 days, then I will ask Brian to cancel this listing on Sunday 4/12 Thank you for looking.

I took for granted the care and handling etiquette lessons taught to me by John Prough and Kodama-san [RIP both], by the NY-NJ-CT group. It is important in how you are perceived when you go to Japan and deal with dealers.

Posting a few more pics and will give it 8 to 24 hours more on NMB, before opening up to the masses on Facebook. The large ex-Denmark Museum Ko-Shoami . Circa 1450-1500. Acquisition number #812 inside the sukashi. Matsukawa design. We debated whether it was made for an O-dachi around the time of the Onin War. $1200 ask. Ask questions.

I understood #1, #2, and eventually #3 after another look to better perceive the 3-D and features. Leave final judgement till I had it in hand, or at least the room. Personally, I don't feel #4 is correct, and #5 I would have gone with Tosa Myochin unless something felt very different in hand. I think of this as a very popular Tensho 天正 era suggestive image. [I wish Ford were still here to argue with me about it.] You are going to see lots of interpretations from all over Japan, and the 3-D of the tsuba and working matter a lot. 2-D Black n White images are challenging. I sometimes wonder about the accuracy of old attributions done by mail correspondence with black n white photos. Especially with a design like this.

quadrilobe? Someone failed geometry.

Inside the nakago ana of the Ko-Shoami I'd guess the museum got it in the 1920s or 1930s, so this tsuba saw WWII relatively safe in Denmark. And another pic of the Uchigatana ko-kinko. It has a doppleganger in the Sukashi tsuba book.