raynor

Just curious, is your origami from the Tampa Shinsa held earlier this year? Been wondering when they start sending those out.

From my limited knowledge I agree on the Chinese assumption. No file marks on the nakago, fresh cut rather then chiseled signature points to a modern Chinese reproduction.

Fittings aside, the lack of work and aged rust on the nakago and sloppy signature are big red flags. As said a very obvious modern fake. Depending on the balance it can be fun for slicing air in the back yard. Never try to cut anything harder then air when the workmanship is questionable.

How can one resist no blizzzzzterz

The bags look ok

Wouldn't surprise me if besides the sword stump it's all rayon and plastic, what with the amount of gloss it might as well be.

So riding in a car you apparently have to choose from death by cancer or crash these days.

Great that the blade is safe, George. If you do not mind, I and probably a lot of other people too would appreciate some photos next time you take it out, especially of the small polished area that was done? Cheers.

Had some very strange experiences with USPS. A cople of false signatures by mailmen and attempted thefts. Helped signing up for informed delivery but last month paid over a hundred dollar for a five day max Express package to Norway to get there by May 17th holiday celebrations, it got there two weeks late after a round trip to Portugal(!) Good you got your tsuba back, accidents happen in every profession but sometimes the lack of standards are almost supernatural.

Looks good and all fingers still intact? You got talent!

I agree on the bird, I have a set of menuki with two sparrows on each about the same size as the bird on the tsuba and all four have well made legs. The mountains are a clear break from the usually serene distant feature they serve, but in hand does not appear badly carved and with some purpose. Maybe a familiar mountain to the maker? I do lean towards the lesser draughmanship tho, considering the legless bird. It comes together as quirky, but attractive as you said. I know the tsuba is not a masterpiece, but as it is my first tsuba featuring different techniques besides just a hammered plate, inlay and dot inlays I hope to learn from it.

That's one thing that puzzled me when I started collecting, using uchiko makes no sense unless you have some specific heavy cleaning to do. No other swords have a similar regime attached to rub the blade with an abrasive. I know it's been said some polishers intend for uchiko over time to finish a polish but still. Just quality microfiber cloth and oil makes so much more sense this century unless you are cleaning the blade after a rigorous day on the battlefield.

Any tips as how to better photo the patina? The initial pictures was taken with a focus on the physical state of the tsuba rather then highlight patina or a specific feature. I guess flat from above with incandescent lighting works?

Depends on your local climate and house conditions. If you live in say Northern Europe, Canada or the like once every few months should be enough. If you live further south in warmer climate it should be done more often. A common mistake is using too much oil, this can actually promote rust so only a light coating is good enough. It sounds simple but this was the main thing I looked into in depth to when I started collecting, there really is no one set answer for everybody.

The thought that the mid to late Edo estimate given by the seller might be off struck me too given that the tsuba and the inlay work especially seems almost spotless, with no signs of wear besides some scruffmarks down along its middle. Then again it came in a very dark old looking and smelling(!) Kiri box with its imprint from age on the pillow inside.

The issue if calling it that is that the tsuba is iron and not shakudo as announced when purchasing. Not really an issue I will loose sleep over as I personally prefer iron tsuba over shakudo, but for someone else it might have been a thing and speaking as a greenhorn I would have to be very drunk to suggest this was not iron five seconds after seeing it. To err is human, I am not unhappy with the deal and will continue to shop with them, just puzzling someone as knowledgeable and usually very thorough would miss it, even the appraisal note describes it as a shakudo plate tsuba. If it appeared that I was having an agenda of some sort that is not the case. Yes the black inlayed leaves appears to be shakudo, and the tsuba being iron makes them stand out nicely against the background I think even tho they're both dark.

Thanks for the input so far. The tsuba does not smell of anything at all, and handling it normally the patina seems quite resilient, no flaking or softness etc. I do like it despite it being iron not shakudo as announced. Still.. That's the thing, I know the dealer is very knowledgeable. It's a Japanese dealer frequently linked to on this very site. Puzzling.

Greetings, I picked up this mumei suposedly mid to late Edo tsuba recently, it was described by the dealer who is very knowledgeable as being shakudo plate but upon receiving in hand it it is quickly very obvious that it is iron. The weight, the feel, the bits of rust on the inside edges, the metal showing through where the patina thins and the tsuba being magnetic makes it no debate. I've never seen iron tsuba with quite this sort of dark patina before, very dark and with a muted sheen to it but none of the deep vibrant blue or purple that shakudo has. Granted I have no seen that many tsuba yet in hand. Does anyone know what sort of patina it is, or any idea of school or other information? The inlays appear to be gold with the exception of the bird itself that appears like brass besides its eye that does appear as a single dot of gold, and the bamboo leaves do appear as shakudo plate. Size is about 7x6.7cm or 2.8x2.6 inches.

Definitively Guan Yin/Kannon. I see lots of these on temples and around people's shops when I wander around towns in Malaysia.

Congratulations. Are those NTHK papers from the Shinsa held in Tampa earlier this year?

Picked up this set of menuki, they didnt come with any information so anything someone can tell me about it is appreciated. Looks like shakudo with gold. The set got a very nice three dimensional effect of depth in hand not easily captured on camera.

I would advise to clean the blade using oil and a microfiber cloth only, no uchiko from the cleaning set unless absolutely needed and only if it is good quality. Most cleaning set uchiko is low quality and bad for the blade.

Thanks for the input so far. As for visual appeal the second one is my favourite too, it manages to evoke a sense of a calm foggy morning stirring memories. I enjoy the appeal of shakudo and gold together, but I agree it have to be very minimalistic and not cross the threshold of bling for my personal tastes. The sukashi style I enjoy for it being anchored in functionality, the whole point of a tsuba in the end. Still not decided wich one of the three here is my favourite and I do not feel like I have to as they all have appeal. However I am not able to tell much about quality differences between them different styles aside. I can tell they are not bad works, but no where near shall we say the works of a certain late Edo gentleman..

Greetings, I've spent a fair amount of time lately trying to nail down my personal tastes in tsuba while being somewhat anchored in quality. Still do not have that nailed but at least I'm no longer looking at obvious cast copies or overly adorned Chinese fakes. The first tsuba I started looking up was mostly photos of the wow inducing high quality Goto pieces in shakudo and gold, so when I saw the below example my automatic split second reaction went in that direction if not as far. Then I looked closer. I cannot in any way call it a bad tsuba, but am I wrong in that it is a little bit chaotic? The carved distant mountains seem a little undisciplined and the gold water lines rounding the rocks on the tsubas front side appear to me somewhat out of synch with the rest of the work. Not that I can do anything better with pen and paper, least of all metal and tools, looking to be corrected here. Again not a bad piece at all, the bird, rice, rocks at the waterside and the bamboo appears done very well. To illustrate here are some distant mountains done better yet still also very simplistic, to my current taste at least. Then there is this sukashi tsuba, wich I think is the better quality work here? There is a lot going on with flowers and leaves but it is all well composed and executed with a symmetry throughout to my eyes. I like both these kind of tsuba but realize I am currently still unable to tell which one here is better work then the other and why on my own, so if anyone wants to chime in and lay down the law I might learn something. Have a nice weekend.

I agree, but looking at the photos in the article what strikes me past the dimensions is how every tiny perfection look effortless as if he chiseled and shaped it all in a fluid first take one morning before breakfast. When it appears effortless at this level that is true skill and mastery. Mozart in metal.