help with what pieces of horse tack are shown on this tsuba

[rkg]

Hi,

I've been researching a ko-kinko tsuba I recently acquired and... I'm stuck on what some some of the items are on it - first off, here's the piece:

 

On the front, I know about the obvious ones (kutsuwa with tazuma attached), but what are the two little rings?
And on the back, I guess the 4 cresent shaped objects are shiho-de (tie downs), but what are the two L-shaped objects?   also, any guess on what the other strap might be would be appreciated.

 

Thanks,

rkg

(Richard George)

 

As an aside, the construction of this piece is fascinating - it looks like slots were cut for all the decorations which were then stuck in, gold and silver iroe was applied, and then the surface was finished off with black lacquer.

[Toryu2020]

On the omote

you have the kutsuwa (snaffle bit) and tazuna (reins)

on the ura 

you have the shirigai (crupper)

What I can't figure is the two right-angled sticks - these are not muchi (crops) still looking thru references to see what they might be...

-t

[rkg]

Tom,

Thanks for taking a crack at it!

Best,

rkg

(Richard George)

[Bugyotsuji]

One L-shaped stick and one case for it?

[IanB]

The double looped thing on the front of the tsuba is a swivel that I think was used for the rope held by the groom who led the horse. The four sausage-shaped items are metal tubes that were tied to the legs of the saddle as attachment points for breast-strap and crupper-strap that stopped the saddle moving forward or backword.  I have a complete Edo period harness which has a girth of hemp strings sewn side by side and an iron ring at one end and a long single string at the other. Apparently earlier girths were of folded cloth that were passed under a horizontal strap sewn to the lower saddle flap, then passed between the two saddle-flaps to emerge through a hole at the top of the upper flap when it tied around the front of the saddle tree. It was this arrangement that is being referred two in the tale of the two generals crossing the river to reach the enemy during the Gempei wars.  The rear L shaped thing looks like a metal / lacquered wood strip attached to the lower edge of the lowest saddle flap to take the rubbing of the girth.  The long wavy strip may be an old style girth, but my set includes two thick hemp ropes, about 5 or 6m long with tassels on each end and they maybe be these. For a long time these ropes were a complete mystery, being far too heavy to be for leading the horse. I asked several yabusame riders about them and drew blank looks. However, I finally found their use - they were used to pass under the horse's belly in the stables and were tied to a beam above the stall to stop the horses lying down.

Ian Bottomley