Nice Shoami Tsuba...

[Soshin]

Hi Everyone,

 

I have been working on the writing up this nice Shoami tsuba and would like to get some feedback about it. I have always had trouble photographing iron tsuba with small brass inlays for some reason. I hope the photos are acceptable. Here is what I have written so far.

 

  Quote

Item Name: Hollyhock Leaf Openwork Design with Brass Inlays

Japanese Title:

Material: Iron (tetsu 鉄)

Age: Azuchi-Momoyama Period (1568 – 1615) (安土桃山時代)

Size: 7.8 cm X 7.8 cm, 3.0 mm at rim

Signature: mumei (無銘)

Shape: Maru-gata （丸形)

Openings: Kozuka-hitsu ana ( 笄櫃穴)

Surface Finish: Tsuchime Ji (槌目地)

Attachment: None

 

This is a interesting Kyo-Shoami tsuba (京正阿弥鍔) with a nice hammered surface (tsuchimeji 槌目地). The iron feels very hard with fine iron bones (tekkotsu 鉄骨) along the rim and good texture with consistent patina. There are nice brass inlays (shinchu zogan 真鍮象嵌) among the openwork design. The ji-sukashi (地透) design which I find very pleasant is hollyhock leaves in a circular pattern two facing inward and two facing outward. The veins of the hollyhock leaves are nicely done using sukidashi-bori (鋤出彫) and each leaf is also accented with two to three small brass inlays. The condition of the tsuba is excellent as no inlays are missing and the condition of the iron is fine.

The previous owner was thinking it was a Ko-Shoami tsuba but I feel based upon the dynamic naturalistic design that it is a little bit younger and would date from end of the 16th Century to the beginning of the 17th Century and likely produced in the Kyoto. The tsuba design of Hollyhock Leaves is very pro Tokugawa and was likely produced once Tokugawa Ieyasu came to power crica 1600. The brass dots are flat inlays that remind me of Onin or Heianjo shinchu-zogan tsuba but the iron plate is very different then these type of tsuba.

[raven2]

Hi Dave,

 

I would tend to agree with you. It definitely has age to it but I think ko-shoami is too early. BTW, I really like this one.

[John A Stuart]

Actually Fred, you are disagreeing with David. He says he thinks it is younger and you say koShoami is too early. Me, I would have called one of the Choshu group artists. John

I take that back Fred. I took your meaning as that koShoami is too early in time as this tsuba was made before that. Obviously (now) you meant the opposite, koShoami times being before the tsuba was made. My mistake. J

[Soshin]

Hi John S., and Fred D.,

 

Thanks for the replies. Here is a iPhone photo of one of one iron bone along the rim. I love the rounded rim as it has a nice organic feel to it that is incorporated into the openwork design which I have seen on some later Choshu and Bushu school tsuba. John S. I don't think with these type of iron bones along the rim and with the how the flat brass inlays are done makes me think Choshu work but then it could be a work of the school during the early Edo Period.

[Soshin]

Hi Everyone,

 

Here are some additional photos taken this afternoon under the winter sun at different angles. They worked out nicely in my opinion. Enjoy...

[ROKUJURO]

David,

 

nice TSUBA which seems to have some age!

 

I can see the irregularities in the surface, and I think they were probably caused by etching or corrosion (which is basically the same). Where do you see hammer marks and what type of hammer could have caused them?

[raven2]

  John A Stuart said:

Actually Fred, you are disagreeing with David. He says he thinks it is younger and you say koShoami is too early. Me, I would have called one of the Choshu group artists. John

I take that back Fred. I took your meaning as that koShoami is too early in time as this tsuba was made before that. Obviously (now) you meant the opposite, koShoami times being before the tsuba was made. My mistake. J

 

No problem John. Yes I meant this piece is younger that ko-Shoami. I still think it is Shoami, but I can see how you could easily see it as Choshu.

[Soshin]

Hi Jean C.,

 

Well having seen many badly rusted tsuba I don't think irregularities on the surface of my tsuba was caused by uncontrolled corrosion as it would have quickly damaged the brass inlays which are completely intact. Having a textured irregularities caused by a controlled etching process (i.e. patination) might be a possibility. The irregularities could have also been enhanced by hammering with a small hammer while the plate was still hot. No I am not sure this is possible as I don't a forge setup to test this theory and getting a workshop of only Edo Period tools and a mass of sand iron to work with would be very difficult to come by. I have watched the blacksmiths at the county fair using modern tools and techniques that would make something like a functional only tsuba much easier to make.

 

P.S. Fred D., that was how I was interrupting your post. Still I don't think the tsuba was made by the Choshu school as in my opinion as the iron is too heterogeneous and hard.

[Soshin]

Hi Everyone,

 

More on this issue of iron and differences between early Shoami (circa Momoyama Period to early Edo Period) and mid to late Edo Period Choshu school work. Here are a few examples of classical Choshu work for comparison purposes. Every example show a homogenous iron characteristic of Choshu school. The first example which is signed is taken from Grey's website: http://www.japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/tsuba-%26-kodogu/t174-exceptional-choshu-tsuba-kawaji. The homogenous iron is necessary to allow the tsuba artist to cut such intricate openwork designs. The second example is a whole page of Choshu tsuba the text written in Japanese: http://www.finesword.co.jp/sale/choshu_tsu/choshu_tsu.htm. Keep in mind that in the appreciation of Choshu school tsuba it is not the quality or texture of the iron but the composition and execution of the design. This is where the first example I gave excels in my opinion. This is in contrast to early Shoami which would often show a much more heterogeneous iron with surface texture and iron bones along the rim. Logically the openwork designs would often not be as complex nor the use of inlaid soft metals such as brass in my example.

[raven2]

  Soshin said:

Hi Jean C.,

 

P.S. Fred D., that was how I was interrupting your post. Still I don't think the tsuba was made by the Choshu school as in my opinion as the iron is too heterogeneous and hard.

 

I agree with you Dave, I think it is Shoami.

[John A Stuart]

I am not sure about heterogenity of the steel being so strict of a criteria. I have a few Shoami (kyo, aizu etc.) that have a very homogenous plate. Not young guys either. I must admit my Choshu are pretty homogenous, but, not like Mito, Nara or Higo tsuba for example. What made me think Choshu is this design and the highlights (dewdrops) that are indicative to Choshu. It may be/seem like very hard steel, but, that is quite vigorous carving and must have posited no problem for the carver. Still Shoami has such a plethora of copied design from Owari to the Kinko schools it could indeed be that. I won't argue the point, just presenting my reasoning. John

[Soshin]

  John A Stuart said:

I am not sure about heterogenity of the steel being so strict of a criteria. I have a few Shoami (kyo, aizu etc.) that have a very homogenous plate. Not young guys either. I must admit my Choshu are pretty homogenous, but, not like Mito, Nara or Higo tsuba for example. What made me think Choshu is this design and the highlights (dewdrops) that are indicative to Choshu. It may be/seem like very hard steel, but, that is quite vigorous carving and must have posited no problem for the carver. Still Shoami has such a plethora of copied design from Owari to the Kinko schools it could indeed be that. I won't argue the point, just presenting my reasoning.

 

Hi John,

 

Thanks for presenting your reasoning for the Choshu attribution. Right now I am about 80% confidante in my Shoami attribution. This might be a good tsuba to submit for the upcoming NTHK-NPO shinsa next month. I might leave the tsuba I was going submit that was once in the collection of Dr. Kazutaro Torigoye with Hakogaki by him to the other NTHK group. The problem with having so many nice tsuba in one collection it might be hard to pick out two pieces to submit. :lol:

 

P.S. If I do submit this tsuba to shinsa I will be sure to post the translated details of the worksheet write up after the shinsa for informational purposes.

[kissakai]

Re this reply (abridged)

 

Hi Jean C.,

P.S. Fred D., that was how I was interrupting your post. Still I don't think the tsuba was made by the Choshu school as in my opinion as the iron is too heterogeneous and hard.

_________________

Yours truly,

David Stiles

 

 

I added a thread about base tsuba material and one of my questions was about determining hardness

Generally I had comments about only being able to test hardness on a Hardness testing machine and it was a fallacy to think you can test it by tapping the tsuba and telling by the 'ring' of the metal.

So can I ask again how can hardness be determined?

 

 

Grev UK

[Soshin]

Hi Grev,

 

This was just my qualitative assement of the iron by touch and feel from having the tsuba in hand and comparing it to a few Choshu tsuba, nothing more nothing less. This is what Haynes was referring to not a scientific quantitative mesaeurment of hardness that would require a destructive test. This comes handling many different iron tsuba.