Dan tsuba

Oh yeah Jason, Now I see the menuki! I hope they are gold coins!

Hey Jason, The ito (the wrap around the tsuka) also appears old and well worn, but what happened to the menuki? From the internet- ("menuki is a small decorative metal ornament tucked under the handle wrap (tsuka-ito) on a Japanese sword's hilt (tsuka). These pieces sit on opposite sides of the handle, improving your grip and adding art to the weapon.")

Jason, hello and welcome to this great forum! I don't know much about tsuka but it looks old to me! The same (rayskin) looks yellowed and old. The fittings also appear to be old and well crafted. So my opinion it is more than likely Edo period. Other members that know a heck of alot more than me will hopefully give you their opinions.

Hello Abu, I don't know. My opinion is that your tsuba looks like some type of made in China recent copy. But hey, I could be wrong!

Thanks Mauro! Yeah, I just figured that out! Oh well, I got excited for a minute! Ha, ha, ha, ha, etc!

Hey guys, I know nothing about these tsuba. Is the motif hot stamped onto the plate? I mean to my old eyes, the motif doesn't looked carved. Oh wait a minute! I just got on the website that Mauro posted above. It states- "A typical middle size Kagemishi tsuba. It is a cast work and has the usual design elements of its style and period, ca.1400. The hitsu-ana, probably added later, have now been filled and are hard to see, much in the works favor. See KoKubo book for a very similar example. Certified by NBTHK Hozon, dated Heisei 27, 2016. Mumei, Kagemishi work." (Long) Wait a minute. Are they saying this was cast in about 1400? It looks like iron to me! This might have to be added to my other thread!

Geraint, well done! But according to the picture shown below, I may have my doubts about that.

So here is a recent thread on this forum that may be of interest about a possible cast iron tsuba that could have been made in the Edo period, for those interested in this subject. Placed by a member on another thread, I thought this was funny!

No! Those are fingerprints from the Edo period from the last person that used the tsuba for its astrolabe function! Ha, ha, ha, ha, etc!

Hey Ian, thanks for your post. Well, the tsuba I showed above was described by the seller as the motif being the Big Dipper. Although I think it may be the Little Dipper, since both constellations have 7 main stars (although the Big Dipper has a double star in it that can be discerned with the naked eye with those with good eyes - so that would make 8 stars in the Big Dipper). But then again, what do I know! You stated "What worries me about this theory that these shippo patterns represent stars is that the distances between the so called stars are equidistant whereas in actual constellations these distances vary." First off, don't worry about anything about these constellation type tusba it is not worth it! Ha, ha, ha, etc! What is interesting, though, is that in the tsuba I showed above where the seller stated it was the Big Dipper those stars look (to me) fairly equidistant from each other. Just my opinion, and I am not trying to create any conflict (I think I have had enough of that!).

Thanks for your post John!. You brought up a good point. Yes, like you stated, why connect the dots? Wait a minute, wasn't that a game a long time ago? Maybe the craftsmen were more interested in showing the constellation pattern when the dots were connected? Hey, I don't know!

Hey guys. So, I was just floundering around on the internet again and came across this constellation tsuba (shown below). What I find interesting, it is the only other constellation motif type tsuba that I have seen that uses holes as stars. There are long slots carved through the tsuba to connect the holes (stars). But the motif is large and those long slots can be seen. If the motif was smaller, would the craftsman have used those type of slots to connect the holes? I think if he did use those type of slots to connect the holes, than the constellation pattern would not be as easy to discern as using the rice type shape slots. Oh well, just a thought!

Now, if the mei on Balin's tsuba is an Edo period craftsman - and as Kiko (Nicolas) stated " I would lean towards Sadashige 完重 for the kin-zōgan mei, a signature in nunome zōgan (gold or silver applied over a cross-hatched grid), which seems to be confirmed by the seal-script characters." - then we have a possible cast iron tsuba made in the Edo period. Oh wait! That is another thread. Oh well, I am getting confused once again! Ha, ha, ha, ha, etc!

Wow Justin! What a beautiful tsuba! Thanks for sharing! But I can't help comparing your obviously hand forged tsuba with the motif attached to the mimi, with the tsuba that Balin showed. My opinion is that there is a big difference in the craftsmanship between what I consider Balin's cast iron tsuba (and yes, I could be wrong on my opinion of it being cast iron!) and your beautiful tsuba.

Hi Balin, Thanks for the added pictures. See what you started! Ha, ha, ha, ha, etc! The more I look at your added pictures of the inside of one of the hitsu-ana (oblong slots) and the mimi (rim) of your tsuba and the abrubt ending of those wave patterns that are not attached to the mimi (because those wave patterns were not fully cast - my opinion), the more I am inclined to believe that it may be cast iron. I don't believe that it is a souvenir, but it may be a replica (cast) of a hand forged tsuba. Like I said before, only subjecting it to non-invasive metallurgical testing will solve the question. But hey, who has the money for that!