Any Ideas About This Sukashi Tsuba?

[FlorianB]

Gentlemen,

I’d like to discuss my latest acquisition.
 

 

This Tsuba measures 77.5 cm x 78.8 cm, the thickness at the seppa-dai is 0.65 cm, at the rounded rim 0.6 cm.

The design comprises warabite and matsukawa-bishi.

Although I’ve done research yet, I’m uncertain of a definite attribution. That’s why I ask for Your opinions concerning school (or “style” as some of You would prefer) and age.
There isn’t any paper so feel free to speculate.

Furthermore: Is there a special meaning in combination of warabite and matsukawa-bishi?

Thanks,
Florian

[Pete Klein]

Very good tsuba.  I would attribute to Ko Shoami, Momoyama jidai, probably for an uchigatana prior to dai sho due to the size and design elements.  Kogai hitusana is older design with smaller size possibly indicating a time when the kogai was in decline in use but that's conjecture on my part.  Positive and negative matsukawa a nice touch, most likely a relevant mon to the owner.  The bracken are often seen as decoration but what I find interesting is that they are open and therefore very bitter/inedible which could be a subtle hint to an opponent, but again just conjecture.  The lateral view shows age in the oxidized texture of the sukashi and the mimi has interesting 'feel' to it .  It's just a very good piece all around.

[MauroP]

I'd suggest Shōami, Akao or Owari, early Edo (the thickness makes unlikely a pre-Edo attribution).

Here below a Shōami tsuba with the same subject:

Bye, Mauro

[Pete Klein]

That's a fair cop...  but I still think it's Ko Shoami.

[lotus]

Mainly due to thickness and somewhat due to busy-ness of design, I would not favor Ko-Shoami. However, early Edo Kyo-Shoami is a possibility (or Shoami) as I have seen them run thick like that. Akao, another possibility.

[FlorianB]

Ko-Shoami was my first choice, too, because of the archaic and unconstrained look.

But angular hitsu-ana were also produced in later times, so Shoami of Edo-period seemed another option.

By the way, I have another Ko-Shoami of about the same thickness.

 

Owari came in to my mind as well, but in this case it must be a late one and should be more refined than this.
Lack of refinement and the smaller seppa-dai speak in my opinion against Akao.

Mauro, Your picture is interesting. Have a look at this one:

 

Clearly the same specimen and depicted in a 1976 reprint of the “Red Cross” Catalogue from 1916.

Not actually a textbook, mere a picture book and this Tsuba is claimed in here as “Kanayama nenuke”, 17th century!

 

Florian
 

[FlorianB]

A friend of mine sees a relation to Akasaka. Indeed there are common traits like size and thickness, the niku, the small, offset kozuka-hitsu-ana and the slight conical shape of seppa-dai - though no sanmai-awase.
My friend supposes it could be some kind of proto-Akasaka still without layered steel.
Any suggestions to this idea?

 

Florian

[lotus]

Florian -

 

Yes, I could see a possible Akasaka attribution here. It does share traits common to that school. It is a really nice Tsuba that is for sure.

[gauze3539]

Beautiful tsuba.