Curran

Lots of good answers from various members in this thread. I'll be curious to see how this one works out.

I've been traveling a bit away from home and am checking in on this thread late. On this laptop, I thought tsuba #1 looked rather realistic and wasn't sure. The others, as @Manuel Coden has the right of it that there has been a steady stream of these for years and they have been getting better. Also, @lonely panet cited a good work and the truth that the early ones often (not always) have a nice filo dough layering in the mimi. Then in the 2nd period some do and some don't. If it is a unique seeming design that strongly represents the philosophy of the school and the iron is correct, you don't always expect the mimi to have those layers. It happens for a variety of reasons. The kodai ones are often of famous designs and yet lack the full feel of the earlier ones, or their tell tale elements. Yet the late Edo Norisuke ones are something entirely else. They are like 1st period ones on steroids, but usually under 5mm of thickness. The Norisuke ones aren't trying to be deceiving, as much as retro-revivial. They really are their own thing, and I've long hoped to find one of the signed Yagyu waveform ones. Either they aren't for sale, or the condition is poor. The good ones are almost as rare as the originals. I've previously posted a good image of the filo dough mimi from my best 1st period one. I'd bought it unpapered from a private collection, so YES sometimes real ones do pop up unpapered. Though I didn't think it needed NBTHK papers, I eventually submitted it for Hozon. Whether agent error or some confusion in our communication, it ended up going TH. I didn't want the extra expense, but -hey- I'll live. Still, good earlier period Yagyu and of either provenance or published such that they don't need papers. The first tsuba is curious. The rest are heavily -Nah... avoid-- Everyone be nice. Yagyu can be a confusing school to know what you are dealing with. I think it took 15 years before I really got into them.

That is pretty much what I was saying. It is a nice tsuba. Very nice. If it were not so spuriously signed, I would place a bid. I'm after something much bigger and should behave, but kawaii little shakudo works like this are tempting.

Largely what Tim said. This is a very core list of the good books for the hard core collector. I was looking at a fitting recently trying to kantei it to a specific maker, though it is mumei. There is one 99.95% authoritative book in this area, and it took me about 15 years to buy a copy. I may only use the book 1 or 2 times per year, but it is the binary [yes/no] book to have for kantei in that particular area. That is all I will say for now. After about 30 years, I've been able to narrow it down to about 20 books. 10 of those books are"must have or stay ignorant" tomes of knowledge.

[1] Look at the work. Really look at it, in detail. [2] Then look at the signature. [3] Now look at the work again. Does the work reflect the reputation of the signer? Example: https://auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/s1233055547 WIthout going to Wakayama, I'll lay the odds that this one is gimei. Could be authentic, but I would be more interested in this kawaii little tsuba if it were not signed.

I'd forgotten this one, found in some of the old books. I tried it myself on an old iron Japanese incense burner we had in the garden. It worked well for 2 or 3 seasons.

Many tsuba have been waxed to some degree. Personally, I don't like it. BUT- if you are not regularly looking at them and handling them, it makes sense. Some people have their tsuba collection stored away in a safe or on a shelf for too long.

This is far far far too true....

Some very talented artists are 'on record' for hating nanako. Nidai Kanshiro was apprenticed to the Goto for 10 years, largely doing nanako. He didn't manage to finish the 10 years If you study enough of his *few* Nishigaki works with nanako, you can literally see frustration in the placement on menuki. I would say that he liked to 'fudge it' in the extreme corners.

You beat me to it. It also seems Chris wrote it up before. When I was more into swords than fittings, I was shown an Inoue Shinkai with similar damage. That burned into the brain fairly hard.

Kyo is short for Kyoto. Kenjo (in this context) is sort of a general term for certain type of tsuba. Slightly more bling (with gold) for going into town type of dress up, but not a tsuba that cost an arm and leg to have. The tsuba equivalent of wearing cuff-links. Usually associated with Kyoto.

@eternal_newbie thank you for the adds on this one. I was unfamiliar with them as a yokai. 送り犬

Hamano school. Workmanship says someone close to Shozui (aka. Masayuki), or along the Shozui line. It is good these are unsigned. When the Europeans came, dealers would often add a gimei 'Shozui' signature to upgrade these for sale to the west. This is my honest opinion. I hope it helps. I don't collect Nara schools work, but this is a nice example in shibuichi.

Still, a lovely post @JohnTo It was educational to me. Lovely tsuba too. If there are any particularly nice mimi shots, do share. Thank you. Curran

Oh baby, I'm SO up for a ride on the TARDIS. Bring back Prince and let us party like it is 1999. Alright- enough thread hijack here. My apologies. Others please help the OP at your discretion.

I know. Can you take me back to the 20th Century, when I still had belief and faith in institutions of learning and of government?

Good- I was scrolling down hoping someone had bought the shi-shi. Decent waki-goto or kyo-kinko. [Edit: I see I was mistaken. #1 shi-shi still available. It seems there was a tanto pair of shi-shi. Image must have been taken down.] Personally, I am surprised that nobody has bought #8. I'd guess them for Umetada work, influenced by the Ezo style? Anyone had a Japanese made fitted box in the last year? The fellow I used is no longer available.

Yep. Many a university museum has trays and drawers of tsuba sitting in the shadows. I won't say which Ivy League university, but one of them has quite the sea of tsuba tucked away in a basement.

Kantei: Owari tsuba of a rare Dalek mon design. Perfectly Authoritarian, in keeping with the politics of that region.

Very off. An Akasaka design with a lot of fakes floating around. That and the Axe + Lightening design. Rust them up a bit, and someone might think they are real. ----Avoid----

Again, close to home. MacTavish <-> Campbell

"If you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you" @Spartancrest Dale, I think you just pointed out the Abyss staring back at me. The tartan one sent shivers down my spine.

#1) Bushu - there is a lot of low end Bushu, hiding the fact that there are some very high end Bushu #2) Ko-kinko - same as above. There are low end ko-kinko worth $100, on up to high end ko-kinko worth $45k The wide spread in values of certain large groups results in a propensity to value some exceptionally fine tsuba downwards towards the center of the bell curve.

Nobody seems to mention waxing of tsuba. While I am not Pro Wax, it doesn't mean other people don't do it.

My problem with this is that the NBTHK has started just throwing into one single basket anything that is kinko and comes from that area. Kozenji and Owari Goto level workmanship vs Nagoya mono . Since 2014 or so, increasingly it is simply labeled "Owari kinko" way to dumb it down. ... way way down.