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Lacquerwork seems brand new… First pic is important but too small to get an idea.

I can echo, Luc! Maedate seems to be a replica, though…

Thomas is right in both cases!

Almost all correct, Meghan The other term is "椎実形兜" (Shiinomi nari kabuto). I guess early to mid Edo period. There are at least two other examples extant. Maybe made by the Saotome school?! The first depictes a helmet housed at the Nagoya castle museum (as far as I know...). Nice find...indeed

Mike, the dō is made quite elaborately and bears nice features, like the mentioned leather cover (kawa-tsutsumi) or the (bear) fur trimming on the pendant sections of the hip protector (gessan), called ue-kuma-ge, besides others…. However, the minor damages of the lacing, cords and toggles aside, my main concern is the obviously broken upper back plate (oshitsuke no ita). The pictures are small and blurry, so let’s wait for better shots (front, sides, back, top, bottom and a view inside). Later some close ups of certain areas…

Agreed with John! Nimai -dō, leather or leather covered. Flashy, but with some damages…one, unfortunately, not so nice. Let’s see when it has arrived…

Lower character seems to be 春. Not sure about the first one…try to take some additional pics!

You get the simplified variant if you copy and paste, Bruce. The “real” character is:

Maybe “tsukuru”, like Piers suggested…

Try 直 (Nao)

Maybe “関住岡田兼義作” (Seki jū Okada Kaneyoshi saku)…omitting the last kanji at the moment…

I’ll be a bit late…currently in Dokkum for a stopover!

I’m already on my way…

Noted.... Moriyama San!

Shōwa 14, I guess… (= 1939).

I once started with Dobrée as well and still find it a good entry to the topic! @Piers “yok-ka” hmm, something new learned (hope I can keep it in mind 😓)

Based on these pictures I would say later…

Thanks, Piers! The inscription is a tad unusual and differs from the “commonly seen”. I’m also not sure if 土 is pronounced “tsuchi” or “do” in this case?! No clue whether it’s authentic….

Not sure, but my guess is “Futatsu-dō setsudan hira-tsuchi iri“…

I think it is “富田備中守橘康廣” (Tomita Bitchū no Kami Tachibana Yasuhiro).

Well, that’s the real deal! To bore you with the long description: “Tetsu sabiji nuri ressei me-no-shita men”. This specific type is sometimes also called “Nara men” in the West, referring to its place of origin. Nick (Ricupero) is always a good address 👍

Hi Steve, it’s far more difficult than that… On your purchase, the overall appearance (among other telltales) raises doubts!

Mizuhiki is an ancient Japanese art form that uses a special cord created from rice paper. So I don’t think it has something to do with water. I finde Piers interpretation really charming 🙂

I would call it “yonmai shitate”!

Addendum regarding the red/ white piping: It is called "水引" (Mizuhiki) and goes indeed back to the O-yoroi times!