Torigoe hakogaki for Katchushi

[Surfson]

This is a new acquisition, and I believe that it has a Torigoe hakogaki  that was made during one of his trips (thus the flying bird stamp).  

My translating skills have slightly improved, but are still dreadful.  Any help with this hakogaki would be greatly appreciated.  Still struggling with writing it in kanji.  

 

 

[Bazza]

Dear Robert, someone is going to ask, so I will  -  can we please see the fripping tsuba?????

 

BaZZa.

[SteveM]

Torigoye's writing is always just on the edge of legibility (with frequent lapses into illegibility), and is made only slightly more transparent by virtue of his following a very similar pattern in his hakogaki. His writing is always a good challenge because at the end of it there is usually a satisfying resolution, whereas some of the deeper "grass script" writings often just leave me drawing a very frustrating blank. This one I think I've got, except for one kanji, so I will post as a spoiler

 

Spoiler

甲冑師鐔　Katchūshi tsuba
鉄地　丸形　角耳　小肉　Tetsu-ji, maru-gata, kaku-mimi, shōniku
桜・梅・丁字透 Sakura, ume, chōji sukashi
室町中期末　Muromachi, chūkimatsu
付説　図の配置、肉取、梅の蕾も右雅？ Fusetsu: zu no haichi, nikutori, ume no tsubomi mo migi ga? (gasaku?)
六十一年弥生末日 Showa 61, Yayoi matsubi (last day of March)

鳥越？水

 

With that you should be able to figure it out. That one missing kanji is bugging me. If I'm not mistaken its repeated in his gō. 

 

[Brian]

Soooo Steve.
Has your Japanese linguistic studies increased your abilities here over time, or has your efforts on the NMB over time increased your linguistic abilities?
Because either way, you are getting better and better....to our advantage 

[SteveM]

A lot of free time in lockdown, a lot of practice on NMB, better search engine skills....And also, a lot of the gents on the board are getting better as well, so there is the feeling that these guys are catching up. Robert got maybe 50% of this not-so-simple hakogaki, and probably could have picked up another 10%-15% without too much trouble. When I get good enough to read the back of Bruno's kozuka on the other thread, that will be a milestone. 

[Surfson]

You are amazing Steve, thank you!  I am always pleased when there is some sort of qualitative comment, like rare, or elegant design, or classical theme....  I suspect that maybe there is something like this in this one.  Can you further translate line 5?  I put your translation into Google Translate and was unsure of the meaning.  

 

Bazza, yes, I will, glad you asked!

[Surfson]

The files are huge.  Also, oddly, there are only images of the front.  

[Surfson]

The dimensions are 88mm diameter and 2mm thickness.  It's my understanding that the older ones are thinner.  I am curious how old it really is.  The NBTHK left out "Ko" on the kantei, so what is the dividing line in date between Ko Katchushi and Katchushi?  

[SteveM]

I had to make one change - from bamboo to clove.

 

Lines 5 and 6 are one sentence, so without knowing that one kanji I am only guessing at the meaning.
"Additional Notes: the layout of the design, the thickness, and the plum blossoms, make the item described on the right an elegant work."

 

On this hakogaki, and many others like it, Torigoye refers to this tsuba as "the right" (右). This just means "the item described on the right". In other words, the item herein. I can't read the kanji following 雅. It sort of looks like 掏, but that kanji doesn't combine with 雅 to form anything, and it doesn't seem to make sense in this context. I could be mistaken about 雅, but that still doesn't help me figure out the next kanji. Given Torigoye's other hakogaki, where he often finishes with some complimentary comment about "the tsuba just described herein", I think this lid is no different. 雅 by itself means elegance and refinement, and I think its use here suggests he feels this tsuba is an elegant work. 

[Nobody]

Steve, you are always amazing.

I am still unsure about the …雅… part. But my guess is as follows.

 

古雅掬すべし (koga kikusubeshi) – should feel the classical grace

[yogoro]

Torigoye died in 1978 (showa 53), hakogaki only has the Torigoye seal ...
Someone used his seal  or used an undescribed box

[SteveM]

Or, it could be that Torigoye wrote this in 1961.

 

The date on the box just says "61" (六十一年) which I reflexively noted as "Showa 61", but it could just mean "1961". 

 

 

[Curran]

From photos and your measurements, I would say Ko-katchushi.

   Papers are from 2015. I think my opinion is known.

[Surfson]

Steve, you could be correct, as I seem to recall that this seal was used when he was performing kantei and sayagaki outside of Japan (e.g. in the US).  

 

Thanks Curran.   Yes, NBTHK has been non committal and disappointing when it comes to kantei of tsuba.  I would think that they will have less submissions if their pronouncements reside only in the obvious.