What school please?

[johnnyi]

Hello all. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable than I can tell me what school this tsuba hails from?   

 

The iron is fudge-like. Under magnification it contains pyrite crystals, consistent with old iron.  

Tsuba is 79.8 high and 80.0 wide.  5.7mm thick mimi and slightly less (5.5mm) seppa dai.

There is visible folding and subtle iron bones on rim.

I was thinking ko-shoami, but did they use gold leaf??

Here are a couple pictures; second one showing odd placement of birds and clearer shot of gilding of feathers and beaks.

Thanks in advance for your help, John I.

[MauroP]

A traditional representation of suzume - 雀 - sparrows, that could well be (ko)-Shōami or Owari (less likely due to the nunome-zōgan).

 

[Iaido dude]

My understanding is that the Shoami school encompasses many influences (e.g. not a uniform style) and that gold leaf and inlays/overlays were incorporated after early Edo. On the other hand, the quality of iron you describe is entirely consistent with Ko-Shoami, which I wouldn't think you'd expect to find gold leaf. I wonder if it is a latter addition (unfortunate, if you ask me).

 

I'm still quite new to early sukashi tsuba. Would you kindly point out what folding of iron looks like? I have found descriptions of this in reference materials that show photos of very well known early guards made in Owari province (Momoyama/early Edo).

[FlorianB]

The whole Tsuba has a rustic appearance. The kidney-formed openings are typical for Shoami.
Ko-Shoami is possible assuming the eyes would have been added later. I noticed in the enlargement file marks which could be a preparation for nunome zogan so IMHO Kyo Shoami seems to be more appropriate.

 

At least there are two possibilities:
#1: An Ko-Shoami work has been at a later date prepared for nunome zogan.
#2: The work was done at Edo-times by a more rural workshop which lacks the refinement and standards of the capital studios.

 

Best,
Florian

[vajo]

(Ko-) Shoami is allways a good guess when all points are unclear. All famous school like higo and others refers to shoami. 

[johnnyi]

Gentlemen, thank you for your helpful replies. I think the Kyo-shoami seems most likely, as the scoring on the edges of the wings and the cross hatching of the beaks and bodies for  nunome seem contemporary (but who knows).  As well, after looking at mimi's of ko-shoami, they seem more half rounded, not quite the same as this tsuba which has a more  abrupt edge.. The tsuba does look rustic, with breaks in the iron and laminations, but maybe it was made in a more rural shop as Florian suggests.   Steve, regarding folding, please give me a few days and I'll take pictures of different type folds and send them on.  Thank you again everyone for your input, John. .