New lower grade red copper tsuba ?

[Christophe]

Hi everyone, I come back to you again for opinions and advice which are important to help me progress.

I found this tsuba end of last month. Look like a little heavy for a red copper one (130 gas for 6.3 x 7 x 0.4 cm). Patina is nice, but let me think it’s modern one. Maui is really short, so this leads me to think that it is a minor artist. Concerning the pattern, they are engraved, and are in copper and I think shakudo, birds in silver. But I can not decide if the black around the leaves and birds is voluntary or the result of a rather mediocre work.

Waiting for your comments and your opinion on this.

Best regards and all my thanks in advance for your help.

Christophe

 

[ROKUJURO]

Christophe,

you cannot tell the alloy from the weight (or better: density) of an item in hand. This could be an average YAMAGANE or something else. For comparison, copper has a higher density than iron. Ford might know immediately what it is!

The TSUBA decoration does indeed look a little stiff and lifeless, so that may not be the best of works. The black areas could be patina or lacquer.   

[Christophe]

Thanks Jean.

C.

[kissakai]

I though the darker areas were to 'suggest' age

[Kurikata]

Mei reads Naoyoshi (直好)

[Christophe]

thank you Greek, this possibility had come to me, but I had rejected because I found it had a result more negative than positive.

Thank you Bruno for the translation. I'm going to do a research tonight on this craftsman.

C.