Puzzle tsuba

[Leporello]

Dear members,

 

today I want to introduce you the strangest tsuba of my collection. Because I haven´t ever seen any similar or even comparable piece, I´d like to hear your opinions on this ´puzzle tsuba´.

The dimensions are: 83mm x 79mm x 3x1,4mm

 

Nice Awa Shoami tsuba!

 

 

BAAM ... ???

 

 

Has anybody seen such a type of tsuba (yes, I know 3-parted tachi tsuba!), can post any pictures or has any helpful idea?

 

Looking forward to your reply,

Tom

[Bazza]

A Daimyo's plaything???  Early Edo??

 

BaZZa.

 

EDIT:  The tree at the bottom in the first pic looks to be lacquer???

[Leporello]

@Bazza:

A puzzle for a very simple minded Daimyo?!   

The tree should also be zogan!

 

@members:

No ideas???

[Brian]

Not a clue

[Steves87]

I have no idea, but as someone who changes out Tsuba on Iaito fairly frequently, you could potentially have multiple middle plates with many different designs which you could change out whenever the occasion suited, but still keeping same shape.... snow theme in December, rabbit at in spring, etc

[PietroParis]

Do the small holes on the two sides on the nakago ana suggest that it was once mounted on a lock?

 

Cheers, Pietro

 

P.S. following up on Stephen's suggestion above: what happens if you just flip the central plate? Do you still get a meaningful (but different) decoration?

[Andi B.]

Hi Tom,

maybe this tsuba was part of a kabuki play sword (theatre props). Some are made to rattle if handled.

But I don't know, how old 'naritsuba' look like...

[Leporello]

@ Stephen: Interesting thought, but the zogan themes under the sukashi fans don´t seem to fit in any particular occasion or season. Furthermore I think it would be much easier and cheaper, to change the tsuba than to build such a complex piece?!

 

@ Pietro: No option, to flip the central piece, because the zogan on the center piece is only in the matching area of the sukashi.

 

@ Andi: ... have to check that out!

[Leporello]

@ Andi:

Unfortunately I cannot find any examples of Nari-tsuba. Do you have some pictures?

On the other hand: You would loose the zogan, if the plates would´nt be perfectly fixed! Does not make too much sense for me. Especially, because the zogan seems to be too fine for a Kabuki-tsuba, which you would never see up close during the play!?

[nektoalex]

very close in construction - https://yuhindo.com/umetada-tsuba/

[Blazeaglory]

Its an old version of a combination lock.

 

To stop hot headed young samurai from drawing their sword too hastily, they were forced to figure out the "puzzle" or combination in order to release their sword.

 

By that time everyone had cooled down and more interested in the neat little Tsuba puzzle than fighting. haha

[Leporello]

@ Blazeaglory: Thanx for the ultimate solution     

 

@nektoalex: Many thanks for the helpful contribution. This is the first (and very interesting) example of a two-part tsuba, I have seen

 

Some other helpful ideas from the tosogu specialists?

[Tanto54]

Perhaps it is a sanmai tsuba that has simply lost its two rivets and furukin....

[mas4t0]

Perhaps it is a sanmai tsuba that has simply lost its two rivets and furukin....

I'm wondering the same thing.

[Leporello]

@Tanto54 and mas4t0:

 

There are several points that do not match the ´classical sanmai with lost fukurin´ theory in my opinion:

- The center piece of a classical ´sanmai tsuba´ should be much thicker than the two outer layers. Here all three layers are of the same thickness.

- It wouldn´t have been fitted with rivets nor with a fukurin, because fixing three steel layers like this would cause massive corrosion between the layers. Also tight mounting at the seppa dai would be very difficult with some sort of rivets. Most probably there were two matching seppa, one with two bolts for mounting the tsuba.

- the rim wouldn´t be decorated with gilding in case of mounting a fukurin

 

So of course it is a sanmai construction, but not in the classic sense.

[Leporello]

Come on all the tosogu specialists! Anyone must have seen such kind of tsuba