Lorenzo

And a dear friend

What a beast!

This statement sounds a bit racist. Would you explain please?

You bid on the item and you won it? Advice should be asked before and not later to be used as a proof for not paying a won item.

I think this point is worth some further discussion, as it was matter of discussion on another board for the very same reason. Tousogu are often lowered as being only the frame of the picture; well I cannot see it the same way. While is clear that without feet there would be any shoes, I still think that the way the sword was dressed was a very clear indication of one person status, tastes, and many other aspect difficult to sum to me in English. I am quite sure that fittings have been matter of appreciation between sword owner exactly as the swords in it.

Good shots! She is good at it. Unfortunately she made also clear that the tsuba is cast

You don't need ivory. Antler is fine for that.

It's Italian, because of the Italian writtinen words on the top (normale means normal; perhaps in French and Spanish too?)

/OT mode ON: Tim, if you have no lucky with any camera a very fast way to obtain a believable picture of a tsuba is by means of a scanner. If you have a copy shop somewhere close by, new copying machines usually can scan in colour and produce a file, pdf, jpg or whatever. If you do so, you should also ask to put your object on the copier glass by yourself and do it carefully to avoid damages to both your tsuba and the copier glass. /OT mode OFF Regards, Lorenzo

have a look.

Piers, Okaeri nasai

Cute. Is the second tsuba I see where the plant is bended to fit the composition :D Me too :? Are we sure about the attribution?

As a side note, and dragon apart, I find the lacquer work lovely. It very reminds bizen yaki, beautiful. The lacquer work itself is worth; the tanto shape is interesting but I fear it's all about shape.. nothing else attracts me. Beautiful signature though.

Although Nanban isn't in my veins, it seems a decent work, I wouldn't worry about it

Keith, I was being sarcastic. To say that Japanese sword were meant as weapons, and not as art, sounds just plain wrong to me. Of course those swords were swords, how can them not be? But ultimately there was art on each of them.

If so, there was no need at all to strive to get hataraki, shape of the tempering line, type of hada and so on; not to talk about the mountings.

It may refer to Urashima Tarō http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urashima_Tar%C5%8D

I've heard Komada-San and she is fine as well. Carlo, Piers told me he was going to stay in Britain until the end of March but lately I am not having any news from him. I hope is family and him are fine, let's wait him to confirm. [EDIT]

Heard a friend of mine living in Warabi (tokyo) and he tells me he is fine, but he has been suggested to keep out of his house for the moment. Some other quakes are happening.

Milt, welcome back and nice to meet you

Would it be a painted stone? :D if it's metal, don't trust only your magnet; It could be some low carbon content steel with some impurities turning it in a non magnetic alloy

Thank you. The kind of koshirae you mention is called kamishimo koshirae; the horn kashira doesnt have shitodome neither holes for the tsukaito though; the tsukaito pass over it. As you say, it isn't a cheap replacement but a very specific kind of koshirae. In your example the tsukaito passes through hence my question about the material; I guess horn would be too soft to hold together... Lovely examples however they are made. Sorry for hijacking your thread ford.

Excellent. Roger, do you mention about the Kashira. That's a detail that struck me from the picture the first time I've watched it. What kind of Kashira are those? Nashiji lacquered metal kashira? Lorenzo

Umetada? Cute.

No, I was implying that it's use in Japanese sword fittings doesn't sound all that traditional to me, hence Showa. Just trying to clarify my point as I have been prompted to do so; I may be wrong.