Ko tosho tsuba...

[rkg]

I haven't been able to shoot anything for over a year due to health issues - but I FINALLY got the studio cleared out, the various wind up stands in place, figured out how photoshop photoshop had screwed up my workflow (and workarounds), etc, and...

 

Just for grins, here's a couple of images of a ko-tosho (or at least that is what the NBTHK thought it was, FWIW) I picked up off of yahoo!Japan not too long ago.  I am not sure what the theme is, comments about what it might be are appreciated.

 

The little beastie has a black coating - when I get some more time I will have to ascertain if it's black lacquer (I that might be what is going on) or if somebody put black wax or something on it.  I need to pull down the microscope and fix that workflow next, thought that might take a while as I have a whole bunch of other fittings to try imaging.

 

The piece measures74.2mm(H) X 73.3mm(W).  It measures 2.9mm(max) at the seppa area and tapers to 2.3mm (max) at the mimi.

 

rkg

(Richard George)

[MauroP]

 

OK, too easy this time...

[b.hennick]

Period and comma...big comma

[Spartancrest]

Bigger comma  https://www.giquello...chi-1333-15?search=&

 

Big but wafer thin. Just how strong would such thin iron plates be against a sword blow?

 

[Curran]

On 4/19/2024 at 6:36 PM, MauroP said:

 

OK, too easy this time...

 

Thank you again Mauro.

勾   =  be bent, slope, capture

So the theme is "sloping jewel" as in akin to https://kansaicultur...-of-Japan-houju.html

???

 

-----------Glad to know you are back RKG. I didn't know you were ill.

As life would have it, I was photographing a Ko-Tosho yesterday.  In some light, it is battleship dark grey. In other light, it gets dark as a kamakura sword nakago.

Ko-tosho is my call. I haven't bothered with the NBTHK opinion yet.

 

 

 

 

[Curran]

Maybe Mauro can suss out what is the design element.

Ito-san's page says "Temari" or traditional Japanese hand ball.  No image of the NBTHK papers and how they describe it.

https://www.galleryy...m/jt0111kotoshotsuba

 

 

[MauroP]

勾玉・曲玉 - magatama, literally curved jewel. Like hōju, magatama has also a religious significance, but it pre-dates (for many centuries) the Buddhist tradition. A magatama is one of the three imperial regalia of Japan (with a mirror and a sword).

[rkg]

Mauro and everybody else who replied - thanks!

Best,

rkg

(Richard George)