Again with the Musashi namako tsuba

[OceanoNox]

Here I come again about this already dead horse.

I was in Kumamoto today, and took the time to visit the Shimada art gallery (museum?) not too far from the castle (still very much under repair after the earthquake, only the keep is open, but it's air-conditioned now).

The main interest was the (in)famous namako tsuba, and potentially Musashi's sword. Interestingly, there were conflicting information. The tsuba is 79mm high and 78mm wide (thickness unknown, but maybe in the 4mm range) with a weight of 83g (indicated on a reproduction made to feel its lightness).

 

① The museum itself claims that Musashi either made the tsuba or liked it very much. The text seemed to hint at the twin namako being a possible image for the two swords. But more than that, the main point was that the tsuba needed to be light to allow for a more nimble use of the sword. This seems to contradict the fact that lighter tsuba will put the sword balance towards the tip.At the same time, Tsukahara Bokuden did write that overly heavy tsuba were a hindrance when cutting.

The large sukashi on this tsuba is also in contradiction with the Suzubayashi ruisan (鈴林類纂) which was cited by Sasano in his "Origin of tousougu" book, where large sukashi are to be avoided to prevent being stabbed through the tsuba. Unfortunately, there is nothing about this in Musashi's writing, but some contemporary paintings of him show the namako tsuba on his sword.

I would personally say that it seems unlikely that a thrust would hit the tsuba instead of anything else (while there are enough instances where a slash would end up against a tsuba).

※ About Musashi's niten ichi ryu, it is also interesting that many people harp about its simultaneous use of two swords (quite literally, as the kata show both swords usually swung at the same time), but most of the kata are for single sword (long or short).

 

② A book about Musashi-related items (in particular his artistic creations) states the tsuba at the Shimada art gallery is likely made by a Higo craftsman. Interestingly, it seems the reigning Hosokawa in Musashi's time also made his own namako tsuba, although a bit more geometric.

 

③ The sword supposedly owned by Musashi, and succinctly called "Yoshioka giri" (Yoshioka cutter?), was a mumei Kaneshige sword, apparently a shortened odachi. The displayed blade was polished and featured a groove, but it is unclear when the groove was added. I couldn't see scars on the blade.

 

Overall a mixed bag: it was quite interesting to actually see some of the items attributed to him, but I felt I left with more questions than answers: I wasn't able to get any shred of evidence for the tsuba or the blade actually being Musashi's.

[Bugyotsuji]

Mark Radburn gave an interesting talk last Sunday to the UK Token members in which he mentioned the large side hitsu ana on Hosokawa/Higo tsuba as representing bait baskets for the lord's falconer. Suddenly I remembered Musashi's namako tsuba, thinking they were pretty similar but smoother internally, with no 'jags'.

 

Thanks for the information above, Arnaud. Interesting. The thought that a sword, or even a spear blade might poke through the tsuba is a scary thought, though.

[OceanoNox]

23 hours ago, Bugyotsuji said:

Mark Radburn gave an interesting talk last Sunday to the UK Token members in which he mentioned the large side hitsu ana on Hosokawa/Higo tsuba as representing bait baskets for the lord's falconer.

This is pretty interesting. I only skimmed the book I mentioned, so it may have been explained there as well.

 

23 hours ago, Bugyotsuji said:

The thought that a sword, or even a spear blade might poke through the tsuba is a scary thought, though.

One of the teachings in the Muso Shinden Jushin Ryu (and Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu and Muso Shinden Ryu), is something akin to "6 sun from the tsuba", i.e. "attack the (right) wrist". On a lighter note, in the movie Sword of desperation (2010), the protagonist uses his sword tip to snag his opponent's tsuba and uses that to force his opponent's sword into a beam.

[Toryu2020]

Yet another tale of Musashi I know - my teacher always taught us that he preferred this design as it was the absolute minimum for getting the job done (Hand stop) and he could easily show students his hands and what they were doing...

 

-t

[OceanoNox]

I will be getting a bit off topic, but I remain in the camp that thinks tsuba were (or should be) hand protection. Sasano (in the Origin of tousougu book) also says that the namako tsuba doesn't look like it would work as hand protection. The issue is that it remains an opinion based on a feeling (there is another one in a MET article where a delicate sukashi tsuba is said to be strong against sword blows, again without ANY supporting evidence). I always remember that the additional hand protection on longswords was a ring or pair of rings, quite similar in aspect to this namako tsuba, and they are usually lauded as effective.

[Bugyotsuji]

I guess Nihonto were not generally used like fencing rapiers, i.e. to probe and prod and stab, but every option was there for the highly skilled swordsman.

[1kinko]

Against a slashing weapon a hand guard is a must. Even if deflected by the blade, the slash can continue until it is stopped- either by the guard or your hand.

[SteveM]

Sasano also says,

 

Quote

It has been widely believed that the tsuba was chiefly for hand protection against an opponent's sword. People believe Kyo-sukashi tsuba were produced recently because they would not survive heavy use. However, the true purpose of the tsuba is to prevent the user's hands from slipping when engaging an opponent in combat, and to maintain the balance of the sword. 

 

I do not know if I believe him on this point, but I am not here to attack or defend him.

This excerpt from from his book The Sasano Collection (Part 1) page 14.  

[rematron]

A little off topic:  I wish I had gone to the castle and museum when I was in Kumamoto but I did go to Reigando, which was my main reason for traveling down to Kumamoto.  It was a bit of a spiritual experience.  I highly recommend it.

 

Reigandō - Wikipedia

[Larason2]

I agree all swords need some kind of a hand guard for protection, even if their principal use is for movements with low risk to the hands. The first bronze age swords didn't have provision to protect the hand, but the first modifications done to this basic design was to add a ridge at the bottom of the blade on each side to protect the hand. There's hardly any swords that didn't have a hand guard from any culture after this, so I suspect that it has been considered an essential aspect of a sword everywhere! The hand is one of the most vulnerable parts of the body to a sword, makes sense to protect it.

[Spartancrest]

16 hours ago, Larason2 said:

There's hardly any swords that didn't have a hand guard from any culture after this, so I suspect that it has been considered an essential aspect of a sword everywhere!

 

The technique used dictates how useful a guard of a sword is - a large number of swords have no guard or a minimal guard

 Cossack Shashka were in use even up to WW2 and had no guards.

 

  Burmese Dha Sword with Heavily Inlaid Blade and Hilt in Wooden Scabbard - circa 1800

https://drouot.com/i...on-of-south-east-asi

 

The Japanese themselves had several weapons with no guard. - 

 

A Japanese Shikomizue (Sword Stick); Blade circa 1750-1800, Mounted 19th Century

Since 710 CE, the Japanese had used swords in cane-style mounting. They were the so-called joto, particularly the kuretake-saya-joto and the urushi-saya-joto. The former had a Kure bamboo scabbard and an overall length of around 160 centimeters. The urushi-saya-joto, on the other hand, had a thinner blade and a black lacquered scabbard.

 

Vintage Japanese Shikomizue   https://www.liveauct...-katana-sword-w-saya   [ I am not totally convinced this one has not simply lost it's guard?]

 

https://www.youtube....esktop&v=yFh6_vPx26k

 

https://www.youtube....esktop&v=S40PDOLDARc

 

[OceanoNox]

21 hours ago, SteveM said:

This excerpt from from his book The Sasano Collection (Part 1) page 14.  

I have checked several sources, such as the "Tsuba" book by Ogasawara, and the opinions vary a lot, but mainly two camps: hand protection versus slip prevention. Sasano is in the later, arguing (correctly) that thrusts are better at bypassing armour (but somehow forgetting all the koryu teachings of cutting "inside" the armour, i.e. armpits, inside the arms, inner thighs, and the use of half-swording for close-distance thrusting), nevermind the fact that the tachi and uchigatana are thought to be an evolution from the straight blades and thus a focus on slashing rather than thrusting, hence little need for slip prevention (especially in tachi with such a large and "weird" curvature).

 

21 hours ago, rematron said:

I wish I had gone to the castle and museum when I was in Kumamoto but I did go to Reigando, which was my main reason for traveling down to Kumamoto.

My in-laws took me there about two years ago. It was very interesting to see the place, although I expected it to be a deeper cave. It does show how far Musashi was from the world.

 

5 hours ago, Spartancrest said:

a large number of swords have no guard or a minimal guard

I had always the impression that swords with minimal guard for use on the battlefield were usually paired with a shield, hence a minimal need for additional protection. The swords used in WW2 do not, I expect, require hand protection, as most opposing troops would not have swords. This is a point in the "War and tsuba" book by Nagaoka (1942) where he states that "large tsuba would be a hindrance against foreigners as they do not use swords" (from memory, might be wrong). But it is also correct that the early katana (as a companion to the tachi) were, or so I have understood from academic papers, without tsuba and more akin to the wakizashi or the tanto in size and purpose.