Ko-Mino Fuchi-gashira Restorative Cleaning Before and After

[Soshin]

Here is a before and after picture of a Katana sized Ko-Mino Fuchi-gashira (古美濃縁頭) set that underwent professional restorative cleaning. Most of the arduous work was done on the kashira. The set turned out very well in my opinion. The set is hard to photograph in detail because the height difference between the base and the top of the carving is very great. This is a characteristic of the workmanship of the Ko-Mino group. By the Edo Period the difference between the base and the top of the carving was reduced. I am going to upload a full set of high-resolution photographs to my homepage (https://www.tsubaotaku.com/) on the first of March but wanted to show two photographs at lower resolution as a fun preview on NMB.  Let me know if you have any questions and feel free to discuss it openly but in a polite and respectful manner.   

 

Before:

 

After:

        

[Franco D]

Hello,

 

Restoration by? 

Thanks for sharing.

 

Regards,

[Dan tsuba]

Hello!

 

Just an opinion from a relatively new collector!  But I like the “before” pictures better!  It seems to me that the details are more visible on what appears to be the “darker” patina.  

 

With respect,

Dan

[Soshin]

16 minutes ago, Dan tsuba said:

Hello!

 

Just an opinion from a relatively new collector!  But I like the “before” pictures better!  It seems to me that the details are more visible on what appears to be the “darker” patina.  

 

With respect,

Dan

 

Thanks Dan. I have long considered the restoration of this set from early 2021 all the way through 2022. It was not an easy decision. I would disagree, but I can understand it and expressing your opinion in a respectful manner is important. The set and more specifically the kashira I think in the long term will benefit from the removal of what I think was dried dirt mixed with pine pitch or something similar. The set is hard to photograph, and I couldn't get the lighting as good as the original photograph even with the same camera. Here is a photograph of the set under different lighting after restoration. 

 

    

 

@Franco D You are very welcome.  You might already be aware of him. I will send you a PM once I contact the restorer and get his permission to share his name.      

[Dan tsuba]

Thank you so much David! 

 

Yes, much better to see the improvement with different lighting of the same set!  And I also see from the “before” pictures where there is now significant improvement from the removal of dirt and other debris from the set!

 

Always with respect,

Dan

[Vermithrax16]

Nice restoration, I like the set.

[1kinko]

Simple cleaning or cleaning and repatination?  Both are relatively straight forward, dirt and body oils are removed with non-polar solvents, repatination with rokusho mixtures.

[Soshin]

11 hours ago, 1kinko said:

Simple cleaning or cleaning and repatination?  Both are relatively straight forward, dirt and body oils are removed with non-polar solvents, repatination with rokusho mixtures.

 

Just a restorative cleaning of set mostly focused on the kashira. The patina is nice and complex on this set making it a change to light for photograph. I might go back to editing the above after image in Photoshop. Just to be clear, nothing was done to the patina of the set.