Tomotsuru tsuba

[cdrcm12]

Good evening,

 

I looking to see if any members have an image of Tomotsuru tsuba work, including signature?

 

According Haynes, H 10162.0, he was the son of the sword smith Kinmichi and worked 1800 - 25. There is apparently an illustration in the Hawkshaw catalogue, lot 1241, plate 18 on page 78, but I don't have a copy of this and can't find it on-line.

 

Any help would be appreciated.

[Spartancrest]

  You can find a scanned PDF here https://archive.org/...paneseswordmou00joly

 

https://www.the-sale...db-a1be-b06f0120988c

[cdrcm12]

Thanks Dale, I was rather hoping you may have something.

[Spartancrest]

  I don't know if this information from Markus Sesko might help.

 

https://books.google.com.au/books?id=ik-E8G6FMQsC&pg=PA257&lpg=PA257&dq="Tomotsuru"++tsuba&source=bl&ots=erDwQ0B5wT&sig=ACfU3U3as6jGBsyQdfeHS52zPVAVwsWeEQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjopK7i_LqBAxXShVYBHaRtCtYQ6AF6BAgIEAM#v=onepage&q="Tomotsuru" tsuba&f=false

[cdrcm12]

Hi Dale,

 

That's useful, thanks.

 

The reason I ask is because I picked up the tsuba below from a recent auction. The signature is faint and I wanted to compare, but not a well known documented artist.

 

 

 

 

[Brian]

.CR2 file? Canon specific. Please edit and re-upload as jpegs. Thanks

[cdrcm12]

Sorry Brian I tried to upload from my phone!!!

 

New images attached now.

[rematron]

Nice composition on this tsuba.  I like how the flower stem enters from the bottom of the seppa-dai and the flower emerges from the top on both sides.

[Spartancrest]

8 hours ago, cdrcm12 said:

The reason I ask is because I picked up the tsuba below from a recent auction.

Your piece looks very like the style of the one from the auction https://www.the-sale...db-a1be-b06f0120988c  [above] Sorry the site has such a bad image and from all I can see only the ura side. I much prefer your image!

I tried enhancing it with limited success.  Is it the same piece as yours?

[cdrcm12]

Hi Dale,

 

Yes, it's the same one. I bought it second time round. I passed on it during the live auction for the very reason you say that the image was poor but having received another small Nara tsuba from the same auction, which turned out to be much better than the image projected I regretted not bidding on it.

 

The Tomotsuru came up again on an online bidding auction from the same auctioneer a week or so later, all the items that hadn't sold first time.

 

I put a bid in and won, happy days!!

[Spartancrest]

I found four "Tomotsugu" listed in Captain F. Brinkley's book 'Japan: Its History, Arts, and Literature (Volume VII) 1902'
A section on "sword-furniture" with a long list of metal workers.  Is perhaps a translation error turning a 'G' into an 'R'? Because his list shows no name of Tomotsuru. Some of his dates are wrong in other parts of his book so I don't know just how reliable he is.

 

[Spartancrest]

On 9/22/2023 at 4:36 PM, cdrcm12 said:

happy days!!

I stumbled on this image from the V&A - similar guard as the one shown in Hawkshaw catalogue. The Mei is not translated by the museum but it looks similar and you might get help with a translation. 

https://collections..../item/O465371/tsuba/

[cdrcm12]

Thanks Dale, very useful reference.