Plain thin mokko tsuba

[Brian]

Knowing as little as I do about tsuba, I was wondering if anyone could tell me anything about this one. I was given it by someone who didn't want it after a remounting job, and I have been wondering if it is even a genuine tsuba with any age to it. Very plain, and seems very thin to me?

Thickness is only 2.7mm, and it is 70mm at the widest part.

No raised mimi, and no sekigane which strikes me as odd?

Could this be a tosho tsuba, a plain low quality tsuba pressed into service when there was a need, or just some aged rough repro?

 

Thanks,

Brian

 

[Rich T]

Hi Brian, the shape of the tsuba, it's thinness, the tsuchime and the elongated hitsu ana all point to earlier work, like late muromachi or momoyama. Mokko is interesting as this look like a tosho tsuba but Mokko is not so usual for this type of work. I makes me think it could be early Myochin or Ko Shoami.

 

Are there any indications of plate folding, like a seem running around the mimi ? ( this could look like very long narrow bones ), this could indicate early Shoami work.

 

It's a nice looking guard and I would think it to be early as I said.

 

just my ( I could be wrong ) opinion

 

Cheers

 

Rich

[Bungo]

my dear moderator,

if you don't want it............it's soooooooooooo plain, may i have it ?

 

milt THE ronin

[Brian]

No. :D

 

I'm starting to appreciate it more and more as I study it and get the feel for it. Has a nice solid and dense feel to it..although I can't really pin down what gives me that impression. I take back what I said about plain...have been studying a bit, and there is no plain in subtlety

I like it more and more every day.

 

No signs of plate folding, but not a lot of thickness to examine. I would say not though. I saw the tosho tsuba on the tosogu blog, and reminds me of the same texture, although the patina here isn't as dark.

Perhaps it is an unusual mokko tosho tsuba...or Myochin as you theorised. Don't tosho tsuba usually have some form of sukashi cutout?

Wish Jim and some of the other tosogu guys were members here

 

Thanks for the help Rich.

 

Brian