Marc BROQUIN

Hello all, :D At the general request, particularly from Brian : I post here some pics of the related aikuchi with this particular ivory kozuka. This piece belongs to one of my french friends and as far as you have been involved in the signature determination, it is justice to give you back some vision pleasure Good visit. :D Friendly. Marc

Hello, :D Incredible indeed !!! My warmest thanks for this determination. What a library should you have to find this artist !!! Brilliant Kind regards MORIYAMA Sensei, Marc :D

Hello all, Could someone give me the reading and kanji written on this ivory kozuka ? Thanks by advance Marc

Hello all, :D Thanks a lot for your contribution. Kind regards :D Marc

Hello, :D I am trying to build a general glossary (Token & Tosogu) with french descriptions and kanji writing, plus some pics when necessary. I do need the description and kanjis for INAKAMONO, WAKIMONO & MAJIWARIMONO. Could our Japanese members help me in this task , Thanks by advance. :D Marc :D marc.broquin @free.fr

Hello all,:D Happy New Year for 2011. :D May this year bring you all the tosogu and kodogu you have dreamed of. Friendly your's :D Marc

Hello, :D Many thanks for your help Moriyama San. But it remains difficult to read the last kanji as NORI. For the Kenyobetsu I found it in the Haynes but the other translation is OK for me. I didn't know the old name of Tosa. Friendly, Marc

Hello all, :D Another challenge : I think the beginning is KENYOBETSU NAKA...... and after UJIHARU The date seems to begin with MIZUNOTO ..... Help needed thanks. :D Thanks a lot Marc

Hello all, :D To give an answer to PCFARRAR : I post therewith an AKASAKA tsuba I saw at the last DTI. it is shown in actual size in the DTI catalogue. It is more than 14.5 cm !!!! So yes I have seen much bigger !!! Incredible size For which use ? Difficult to say Best :D Marc

Hello all, :D I share the determination of SOSHIN; it seems to be a NAMBAN nunomezogan tsuba. You have an other example in the Illustrated Catalogues of Tokyo National Museum related to Sword guards p.159 #509. Yours is much bigger and the nakago ana with this strange surrounding motif makes me think to a naginata tsuba. About the age, I would likely say end of 17th to mid 18th century, according to the museum book. Best :D Marc

Hello, :D After this magnificent comparison of snakes :D , any suggestion for the SOSHO MEI ? Thanks by advance Marc

Hello, :D This tsuba seems to have lost its original patina and someone has tried to repatinate it, without great success apparently . Anyhow this kind of work looks like SHONAI SHOAMI school but of lower end. The way of carving and base metal makes me think of that. :? Hope it helps a bit. Friendly Marc

Hello all, This is probably a Meiji tsuba but mei is somewhat difficult to read. Any idea ? Thanks Kind regards Marc PS : I feel the beginning for the right part is NARA ... I looked again upon the last 2 kanjis and found that 山麓 yama (no ) roku ? Do you agree with that possibility, meaning the foot of the mountain ?

Hello all, :D I post herewith some new pics of this FK. It is more and more obvious the signature is not good. The nanako is not a Goto nanako at first and furthermore the takazogan is not so good to be Goto. I let you judge of that matter. Anyway best regards. Marc

Hello all, :D a new challenge. One tsuba for auction in Paris for the 19th of November (Expert Portier, Beaussant-Lefevre auctioneer) Who is the maker ? Is it SHOSHIN or not ? Best regards Marc

Hello all, :D I found this FK on the Site of BoB Benson and wanted to have more information about this inscription. According to what I can read with my modest experience, it could be from YOSHIKAGE (YOSHIMICHI, KUBO FAMILY) KEIDO. Thanks by avance for your comments. Marc

Hello all, :D Thank you first to all who made research and answered to my little request I just come back from the DTI where we went with Jean and more than 20 of our friends from the french KOKUSAI TOKEN KAI. We missed you a lot. I begin to emerge from my jet lag and take back the discussion about this FK. For John, you will find Shibui Swords in the Japanese Sword Index. His name is Elliot Long and he his member of JSS/US and NCJSC. His address is PObox 2103, Gresham Oregon 97030. Related to the main discussion, First of all, when you look at the various books, you find out that GOTO SENJO had a lot of variations in signature and kao. Despite the green paper attesting this FK to GOTO SENJO, I share also the thought that it can be a forgery. The pictures are certainly not good enough to look correctly at the work presented here. Some of his signatures and kao look like this one but some variations lead me to doubt this to be SHOSHIN So thanks again for your help and sharing ideas. Kind regards Marc PS : I will try to get some more pics of the work itself from my friend.

Hello John, :D This style is intrigating a lot. Yes, surely when we speak about sawari or sahari (the 2 words are found) immediately we think HAZAMAMA and KUNITOMO school. But all the Kunitomo I know , authentified ones, where all thicker than your specimen, around 5 or 6 mm, I think to allow for carving the cavities necessary for pouring this copper alloy. All of them where then surfaced to equalize the surfaces of iron and sawari, in large or small designs. :| Outside of this peculiar school technique, I got once a small tsuba (wakizashi) with a small design of some kind of karakusa in thin lines, filled with sawari . I have never thought this tsuba to be from HAZAMA school and think this technique has been used minoritary in other school. It is always easy to say, it is SHOAMI, but in this peculiar case, I would vote for this attribution. Comments welcome. :D Best regards :D Marc

Hello all, :D Please find herewith the mei of a fuchi, I had to determine for a friend of mine. It seems to be from Goto Senjo, the certificate (tokubetsu kicho) also says that. Any idea to confirm or not ? Thanks by advance. Best Marc

Hello, Many thanks for your so quick answer Mr MORIYAMA. This is highly appreciated, indeed. How do you read those kanji in Japanese out of TERASAKI that I understand now how to read it. I'll send you a PM after. Friendly. Marc

Hello, :D I am blocked upon decyphering the right part of this YASUNOBU mei. I think it is YASUNOBU but could be after HAYNES YASUAKI or HOSEI. On the right the first Kanji could be NORI; the second ???, the third JI or TERA the fourth KI or SAKI and the fifth is apparently UJI. :? But it doesn't give the real name of this family. Thanks by advance for your always appreciated help :D Best to all Marc

Hello all, I wanted to add my little stone to this interesting discussion. I understand when you bought the tsuba it was in a worse condition. In my opinion, it cannot be Muromachi or even Momoyama. All the tsuba from these periods bear the marks of mounting and re-mounting. No exception in my knowledge. So as Lee suggested what was the travel of this tsuba to remain unmounted, as far as it is not by far a museum piece that some temple could have put aside as a treasure. On the other hand, if we consider a 19th or 20th production, unmounted, it is strange you have found it rusty and dirty. I fear it has been prepared in such a way to look like a very old tsuba. I would prefer to have it in hand to give my last advice, but in my opinion this tsuba doesn't sound what your seller claimed. Friendly. Marc

Hello all, John is totally right about Goto schools. You should consider the Goto schools as the highest universities in that kind of job. The students of those schools were strictly and highly selected at entrance, upon their workmanship. It was not possible for a current candidate to be a student of a Goto master, even by relationship. Think that they had to protect their image among the clients. So this kind of irregular nanako is not issued from even a Goto student. Many copist of the 19th century and even 20th have tried to produce somewhat attractive imitations for gaijins. This is certainly part of it. Friendly, Marc

Hello Sanjuro, I think all has been said to protect rust to pursue its action. Rust is active because red rust is porous and hydrophile. I am geologist (education) and can say that it is possible to find in the nature cristallized Hematite which is Fe203, those cristals are not porous. and those cristals are black ! Black rust is for me another form of Fe203 more stable and much less porous. I do not think it can be possible to find magnetite (Fe304) naturally underbedded under red rust. Magnetite in my knowledge doesn't form at normal pressure and temperature, but is found in case of metamorphism in rocks. Rusting is an acidic reaction, has somebody tried to use a base such as NaOH to stop the acidic reaction ? Best Marc

Hello Chuck, A lot of those tsuba are issued from Georgio Di Nepi's collection. And when you Know Giorgio as I know him, there is surely a good reason he has sold them. Look at the " Yagyu" which is a copy of but not a Yagyu. So consider quietly and calmly and share your questions for your future buy, this guy seems not to be a real expert. Best Marc