Kinko Tsuba Kantei Opinions

[Ron STL]

Here is a shakudo tsuba, 71mm x 64mm x 5.5mm, rim decorated in low relief kiri/wisteria/etc in rich gold overlay, a few in copper. Nanako is made in vertical pattern. Color of shakudo is good as is the richness of the gold. The camera shows up the very light wear worse than it is. I'm not at all sure of where to place this tsuba as to a school. I would not think the Goto did this design. I would appreciate some thoughts on kantei for this one. Lovely work. It is mounted as part of a koshirae for a mumei daito recently purchased. Thanks!

Ron STL

[Thierry BERNARD]

Yoshioka??

[John A Stuart]

This type of Nanako is either very early or very late. I think this is later period, edging towards the restoration, especially when I look at the carving of the mimi/ edging. Not Goto I agree. Mino?? John

[Ron STL]

Yoshioka, that was what had been on my mind but was hoping to hear that from someone else. Thanks Thierry. There was a fantastic tsuba at the Chicago show last weekend that the owner (name escapes me) said was Yoshioka, if I remember correctly. (Asking price: $50k so you can see how super quality it was.) I have some excellent Yoshioka tosogu but nothing to compare with my tsuba, so this attribution sort of surprised me, but reasonable. John, I felt this tsuba was not at all Goto or Mino (Goto). The vertical nakago pattern indicates, as you pointed out, either ko-kinko or late Edo kinko -- I always watch for that, loving ko-kinko -- and this tsuba was definitely not ko-kinko work. With this direction I'll now seek out some comparison examples of Yoshioka. The rest of the koshirae is intact and beautiful with f/k and menuki displaying double mon in rich gold utori on f/k and combo utori/shakudo on menuki. Nanako is more bold than on tsuba, so perhaps the tsuba was once matching the other fittings. Interesting mumei blade, too...but that's another story I may get into later. Ron STL

[John A Stuart]

I don't understand the Yoshioka call. Maybe you could tell me what leans you this way in particular. When you look at Yoshioka school work the Nanako follows the shape of the Tsuba. I haven't seen this vertical style in Yoshioka work. The small shallow punch work, sure, but, vertical, hmmmmm? John

[John A Stuart]

I found one by Yoshioka Inabanosuke, but, it is an outlier, no? John

[Brian]

I'll be honest, I don't see Yoshioka quality here. Nice, yes. But those kiri mon are easily turned out and applied (I suspect Ford would say) and the nanako is good, but not perfect. And the colour and patina looks thin and fragile.

Now the f/k..those are a different story. Beautiful.