OK, my turn - what is the theme of this tsuba?

[rkg]

Hi,

 

I am trying to get this piece documented and seem to be having trouble with the description.  Since we seem to have some theme whisperers on the board, I was hoping to get some help on this.

 

first the tsuba:

 

The piece is (obviously) made of iron, measures 72.3mm(H) X 72.6mm(W) X 5.59mm(T,max), and weighs in at 67.8g

 

Some bones are visible in the mimi.  My guess is that its probably Owari, Momoyama to early Edo period

 

What I am stuck on is the theme (is it "just" karigane (wild geese), or does this combination (geese, mimi shape, etc) point to something else?  I am also trying to figure out what this shape would be called as well.

 

Thanks in advance,

rkg

(Richard George)

[Spartancrest]

Richard, could the rim represent stylised clouds perhaps? At least it would fit in with the flying birds.

[Brian]

I agree on the geese. Not sure any of the rest represents anything specific.

[Kunehito]

The rim design with its 16 elements including the holes besides both right and left Hitsu Ana remind me of snowflakes as a motive. It definitely doubles as geese and snowflake. Nice Tsuba.

cheers,
Tobi

[ROKUJURO]

It is perhaps CHIDORI and clouds. KARIGANE are often depicted with more curved wings. 

[christianmalterre]

Rich,

for me there is nothing special interpreted....of course you can always want to interpret somehow and something....but I think that is pure stylism and taste.
Possibly the Mimi was damaged at one point and the whole magic was organized afterwards ? Who knows.....
Owari no, this is more typical of Shoami....( also the Geometry of the Hitsu-Ana .....)
And this wild goose motif has been designed in such a way and on a such massive scale ( also in other schools or traditions ....lool Kyo...or Akasaka...)...I would also not stick to this at all....

Funny piece....that´s all....

 

Christian

 

[Matsunoki]

Geese get my vote. Chidori  are shoreline birds and thus usually depicted with waves….I think. The design on either side of the Hitsu ana suggest clouds??

[MauroP]

I'd say yuki karigane sukashi tsuba (雪雁金透鐔). The mimi could be described as 竹節肉彫耳 - takefushi-nikubori-mimi.

[Bugyotsuji]

Minimalism, strength and fragility taken to their limits while still remaining decorative. Contains the eight directions including the subliminal Kuyōmon and Buddhist wheel of the law. What’s not to like?

[rkg]

On 10/25/2022 at 9:56 AM, christianmalterre said:

Rich,

for me there is nothing special interpreted....of course you can always want to interpret somehow and something....but I think that is pure stylism and taste.
Possibly the Mimi was damaged at one point and the whole magic was organized afterwards ? Who knows.....
Owari no, this is more typical of Shoami....( also the Geometry of the Hitsu-Ana .....)
And this wild goose motif has been designed in such a way and on a such massive scale ( also in other schools or traditions ....lool Kyo...or Akasaka...)...I would also not stick to this at all....

Funny piece....that´s all....

 

Christian

 

Christian,

Thank you for your observations(!)
Yeah, reflecting on your comments I agree - probably shouami is a better call for this piece.  As an aside, here's a "kyo sukashi" tsuba that I believe was a copy of a kyo piece made in owari - even though it looks like a kyo (and actually has old papers to Heianjou sukashi), the metal is completely different from what the Kyo boys used (ever). 

 

 

I saw a thread somewhere a while back about which birds actually went with which sukashi, but I can't find it now.

 

Thanks,

rkg

(Richard George)

 

[rkg]

15 hours ago, MauroP said:

I'd say yuki karigane sukashi tsuba (雪雁金透鐔). The mimi could be described as 竹節肉彫耳 - takefushi-nikubori-mimi.

Mauro,
Geese/snow theme - yeah, I can see that.  Thanks on the bamboo joint observation about the mimi as well.  I Really Need to get back to studying Japanese (the last couple of years I've been dealing with family issues, but the worst of that is about over so I can get back to studying - probably a good idea as I'm planning to go to Japan next spring for a while (just need the dates of the kid's last final in March), but I digress...).

 

Best,

rkg

(Richard George)

[rkg]

First off, thanks to everybody who replied! - I started replying to individuals, and realized everybody's input was helpful/and that maybe I shouldn't fill up this thread with "thanks" messages.

 

It is a nice piece, but...  it is actually on my short list of pieces to send off for sale.  Thanks to not being able to do the "release" part of "catch, study, and release" for a couple of years now I've got too many tsuba and now that I have a moment to think critically, some have to go. 

 

Thanks again,

rkg

(Richard George)

 

 

[kyushukairu]

Whilst bamboo is a decent call for the mimi, another possibility is a 16 petal chrysanthemum. Also, whilst this tsuba is certainly Shoami, it’s more likely to paper to Kyo-Shoami (oval seppadai and oval hitsu-ana are a kantei point). Another possibility is Ko-Shoami - the hollowed seppadai and small indent for the kogai (on the righthand hitsuana) suggest this has some age to it, though there should also be abundant tekkotsu for a Ko-Shoami attribution. 

 

As for the ‘Heianjo sukashi’, Akasaka could be a possibility, based on the lamentation lines. Early Akasaka are often sanmai (three layer) construction. It’s difficult to tell if that is the case from the photo though.