Mekugi Caps?

[Peter Bleed]

Today I bought - and had to unpack - a totally unimportant little tanto. It had a lacquered tsuka without menuki, but it had rather nice silver foil covered cherry blossoms on what I was sure was the mekugi-ana. I closed the deal assuming/hoping that these were either a threaded or sleeved mekugi. But, NO! They were a matched pair of short nails with silver foil covered sakura-shaped head that had been pounded  into the mekugi. They came out - although the mekugi was totally trashed.

I have never seen this style of closure before? As anyone else?

Peter

[Vermithrax16]

I have not. Will see what others can add. Pretty cool though Peter!

[TETSUGENDO]

Never seen this arrangement before. I have seen a decorative metal cap glued (kusune) to one end of a mekugi and another cap glued in place on the tsuka, but your 'pins' are new to me.  Interesting.

 

-S-

[Ken-Hawaii]

The infinite creativity of the Japanese craftsman.

[Gunome]

I see already once these kinds of menuki that are pinged.

I think there are quite uncommon. Usually we see metal menuki with a screw.

Compare to traditional mekugi or screw, I an not sure these one are the best way to fit the tsuka as the one I saw were a bit loose.

[IanB]

I have seen these, not on a sword but on the mekugi of a gun - just trivial little copper tacks with rounded silver heads.

Ian Bottomley

[Bazza]

Peter said:

> They were a matched pair of short nails with silver foil covered sakura-shaped

> head that had been pounded  into the mekugi. They came out - although the
> mekugi was totally trashed.

 

The fact that the mekugi was totally trashed says to me this was not done by a Japanese craftsman, but by some arstistic goombah (East or West) wanting to jazz up the appearance of a plain bamboo mekugi.  I have occasionally seen these decorative style heads in tanto tsuka, but they were attached to a tight sleeve/pin style sliding fit.  Also seen, of course, are horn mekugi that look quite nice without any decorated tack heads.

 

BaZZa.

[Stephen]

Rather tacky!