A new acquisition, a tsuba signed KIKUCHI TSUNEKATSU

[Gilles]

Dear all,

 

I acquired yesterday a tsuba at an action sale which is signed KIKUCHI TSUNEKATSU (please see the pictures). I've made a quick research and the signature looks good. I just bought it because I like it. Please tell me your thought about it. Good signature or gimei ? Quality ?

Please bear in mind that I am not a tosogu man.

 

Best regards,

 

PS : there is no hole in the nyo figure (white spot). I think that a piece of paper was on the tsuba when the picture was taken.

[cabowen]

Nice!

[Soshin]

Hi Gilles A.,

 

I like the tsuba as well and thanks for sharing. To me it looks like a good quality tsuba from the Meiji Period likely made for the domestic Japanese market. The expression on the ni-o is really great in my opinion. It looks like it was never mounted on a sword which is often the case for these type of tsuba. How big is it?

 

 

 

Yours truly,

David Stiles

[Kevin Adams]

If the mei is good, Kikuchi Tsunekatsu was born in 1704, which would place his work mid- to late 18th century...

 

Nice find - I actually prefer the composition on the ura to the omote, the treatment of the tree is interesting.

[docliss]

Dear Gilles

 

An interesting tsuba by an artist (H 10811.0) who specialised in usuniku- and katakiri-bori. May we please have a better photograph of the mei; it is very blurred, but the kao looks promising.

 

With kind regards, John L.

[kaigunair]

Very nice piece! Is it possible that the item being held by this temple guardian once had a blade? I see some wear marks on the cheek which a blade might have been attached? Or is it supposed to be a scroll?

 

Pics of the guardiars from the Todai-Ji temple, carved during the kamakura period....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Nio_g ... n_Nara.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:T%C5% ... statue.jpg

[Brian]

Gilles,

Nice patina, good surface hammer marks, good motiff and quality carving. I don't know if it is shoshin or not, but quality is quality. Maybe not Kano Natsuo- good..but still a nice piece.

I think he may be holding a Varja?

 

Brian

[Gilles]

Thank you for your comments gentlemen, I really appreciate.

 

Here are my answers.

David, this tsuba is quite big, 8 cm X 7 cm.

John, I've tried to take a close-up of the mei. Hope it helps.

Kaigunair, it is a Vajra, the gold is a little worn out at one end of the Vajra and the left nostril of the temple guardian show also some wear. They are very prominent.

 

All the best,

[John A Stuart]

I am no pro at this, but, I think 'NO'. Gimei. John

[Soshin]

Hi Jonh S.,

 

You could be right the mei looks a bit off. The workmenship does remind me good quality Meiji Period shirimono made for the domestic Japanese market. I will look up the mei in my books when I get home from work. Back to the good old day job. :lol:

 

 

 

Yours truly,

David Stiles

[Gilles]

Gentlemen,

 

According to the different mei pictures of that tsuba maker, I agree that the kanji(s) are usually sharper but on the few exemple I've gathered on the net, the tsuba(s) are made of shibuichi, copper or shakudo. I am inclined to think that on a thougher base as this tsuba which is made of iron, the engraving can be harder to make, thus this blurred effect ???????

What do you think ?

[Jean]

Gilles,

 

Question: why did you find only soft metal examples on the web and no iron ones?

[Gilles]

Dear Jean,

 

You've got a point my friend but I only found two exemples so I still hope that there is a slight chance (which is shrinking I admit).

[Thierry BERNARD]

Congratulation Gilles nice tsuba!

[george trotter]

I am no tosogu scholar, but if Tsunekatsu was 64 years of age in 1768, he was in the age when this tsuba would have been made for use on a sword. Contrary to this, the carving on the omote here flows into the seppadai which indicated that it was made as an art object, not for use.

I am not knowledgeable on tsubashi, but I think this: unless tsuba were being made as art objects in 18th century, this art on the seppadai makes me think Meiji art object also.

I do like it tho, I like the facial expression and also the ura design as Kevin said.

Nice tsuba,

Regards,

[Ford Hallam]

I am compelled, for the sake of Tsunekatu's memory, to add a few comments.

 

Firstly, I think it quite wrong to judge this to be either Meiji period work or Shiiremono. The workmanship, not to mention the artistry, is first rate. In addition it's in really decent condition. Those 2 flat spots are easily remedied.

 

Kevin made mention of the quality of the decoration on the back, and he's absolutely right, it demonstrates a very skilful and expressive use of the chisel indeed. And isn't that what Haynes tells us to expect? The silver inlaid blossom could do with a careful clean to properly reveal their original appearance though. That grey blotching that has 'grown' around them is silver sulphide and can be safely removed from the iron patina also. The mimi is very nicely formed and perfectly compliments the gently hammered ground, the patina is beautiful too. Meiji period work that this seems to remind some of is inevitably on utterly characterless metal, this tsuba on the other hand shows clear signs of folding completely consistent with the sort of metal I'd expect to see in 18th cent. work like this. The technique expressed in the handling of the Nio actually reminds me of top quality Hamano work.

 

Concerns about the design intruding onto the seppa-dai area are misplaced also. Any number of artists, from Umetada Myoju on, routinely ignored that 'rule'. All they did was to cut the design in intaglio or shishiaibori, that's to say, below the surface of the plate. Tsunekatsu has done exactly that in this case also. So yes, it's clear from this trend that tsuba were made as stand alone art objects at that time.

 

Tsuchiya Yasuchika I

 

Shimizu Jingu I

 

Mitsuoki Otsuki

 

There are very often significant differences in the appearance of mei cut in soft metal and in steel. This is not to do with any imagined differences in hardness though. It has to do with the processes employed to patinate the steel. These tend to soften the crisp edges of the mei.

 

As to the validity of the actual mei, it is not really much use comparing to examples in soft metal so at this point it would seem to be a moot point to me. What is clear to me is that this is a very fine tsuba and one that I'd be more than happy to own. If the mei is wrong then it ought to be right because the work is superb.

[Pete Klein]

I agree fully with Ford on this (and thanks for saving me the same leg-work). Here are two examples from Wakayama Toso Kodogu Meijei Taikei:

 

 

It's very close. If mine it would go to NBTHK shinsa. No guarantee but in this case probably worth it.

 

Pete

[Ford Hallam]

Cheers Pete, thanks

 

My personal feeling is that it's good and would pass easily. In fact I'll call the NBTHK and tell them it's fine

[george trotter]

Thanks for that discourse Ford,

It did occur to me also that the design could be cut "below" the surface so it could still be worn on a sword with seppa, but I couldn't tell in this instance, it looked proud to me.

I guess I was just too lazy to do a search on how early it was that designs were cut into the seppadai, but did put that caveat on the "Meiji" comment...so thanks for clarifying that. I too like the workmanship and am glad it is deemed correct in quality for this artist...in fact if I came across it myself I would have snapped it up.

Regards,

[Ford Hallam]

More than welcome George I was also concerned that Poor Gilles was getting a bit despondent with the possibility that his tsuba was not what he'd hoped.

[Gilles]

Gentlemen,

 

Thierry, Georges, Pete, thank you for your comments and of course a special thank to you Ford for your explanations which translated in words what I felt about the general impression of that tsuba. I have bought it like I buy my swords, with my feelings. But as I am not a tsuba guy (I already try to be knowledgeable on sword), I asked you guys to know what I've bought.

Ford, your technical knowledge is quite impressing and very welcome.

[Soshin]

I am compelled, for the sake of Tsunekatu's memory, to add a few comments.

 

Firstly, I think it quite wrong to judge this to be either Meiji period work or Shiriimono. The workmanship, not to mention the artistry, is first rate. In addition it's in really decent condition. Those 2 flat spots are easily remedied.

 

Hi Ford H.,

 

Well we do agree that the workmanship and artistry of the tsuba is first rate which I think is the most important point. But I would like to make one point and that is that there are Shiriimono that have first rate workmanship and artistry that was design for the domestic Japanese market in the Meiji Period. It was never intended to be mounted on a Japanese sword therefore the Japanese term Shiriimono is used. Here is a really fine example by Yanagawa Morihei but I feel the tsuba was not intended to me mounted on a sword but as a standalone artwork. This example was made in Taisho Period.

 

 

Yours truly,

David Stiles

[cabowen]

Why the seki-gane?

[Pete Klein]

Brilliant!

[Brian]

Aesthetics and tradition.

Even Ford fits them on works not intended to be mounted. Just feels right is my guess.

 

Brian

 

Btw, David..that tsuba is amazing. Seriously. Do you have a pic of the other side? Wow...just wow.

[Kevin Adams]

"Intention" to mount is the key here - how do we know what the artist intended in that regard? Maybe it was "intended" to be mounted, and just never was...

[runagmc]

I agree Kevin... we can only speculate about intentions for the most part...

[Soshin]

Aesthetics and tradition.

Btw, David..that tsuba is amazing. Seriously. Do you have a pic of the other side? Wow...just wow.

 

Hi Brian,

 

Below is the ura side. The photographs are taken from a Japanese book of Kinko tsuba of the Meiji Period but the tsuba in question is from the Taisho Period. In regards to the my use of the Japanese term Shiriimono (仕入物) I am taking it from Rich T. website "Kodogu no Sekai":http://kodogunosekai.com/ as well as a few other references. In my opinion this tsuba that is the topic of the tread like like my tsuba from the book was never meant to be mounted on a sword.

 

 

 

Yours truly,

David Stiles

[Ford Hallam]

David,

 

if it's really 'shirimono'(sic) then by definition it's crap. There was a remarkable amount of superb work produced in the Meiji period BUT to apply the derogatory term 'shirimono' to everything from that period is both insulting and revealing of a complete lack of awareness of this tradition. In any case I think I deeper understanding of the work of 1000 years of craftsmanship and artistry is required before we begin denouncing perfectly fine examples of the art form.

 

I would be very interested to see where Rich T suggests that the defining characteristic of shiiremono is the apparent inability to mount the tsuba. As I've already demonstrated this feature precedes the Bakamatsu period by quite a long time.

[Soshin]

David,

 

if it's really 'shirimono' then by definition it's crap. There was a remarkable amount of superb work produced in the Meiji period BUT to apply the derogatory term 'shirimono' to everything from that period is both insulting and revealing of a complete lack of awareness of this tradition. In any case I think I deeper understanding of the work of 1000 years of craftsmanship and artistry is required before we begin denouncing perfectly fine examples of the art form.

 

Hi Ford,

 

No not all 'shirimono' is crap but much of it is. The example I posted is a masterpiece and would not be considered 'shirimono'. Well maybe I not using or applying the term correctly as my Japanese skills are a limited but implying that I have a complete lack of awareness of this tradition is a little over the top and not helpful. I am now removing myself from this discussion. Goodbye.

 

 

 

Yours truly,

David Stiles