Kanayama with Groove on Edge of Nakago-Ana

[Iaido dude]

I have had this small Kanayama tsuba for some time, purchased in Singapore before I started collecting tsuba, and subsequently lost during move back to Boston. It has been rediscovered, although I honestly don't know how I acquired it and from whom is was purchased (probably on eBay or an antique shop). I did have an interest in nihonto and Japanese antiques in general at that time. 

 

Anyways, it took me a while to notice that there is a well-defined gouge or cut out in an elongated and sharp vertical groove present on the left middle edge of the nakago-ana. I thought it was damage. However, in Eckhard Kremers study "A Kyoto Master and His Workshop," he describes this kind of feature as common to Ko-Sukashi from the same workshop if not the master (see photo below from his study).

 

These gaps were often filled with strips of copper indistinguishable from the sekigane that we often see including those present on my tsuba. Has anyone else encountered this kind of cut out? Who can fill it in with a copper strip? I'm pretty handy with metalwork applied to restoration of vintage electric guitars, but I am not keen on tackling this kind of work.

 

 

[ROKUJURO]

Steve,

if I remember correctly, a similar KANAYAMA TSUBA was discussed here on NMB not very long ago.

My recommendation is to leave the TSUBA well alone. It is a precious item that would only loose some of its consideable value if you alter it.

[Spartancrest]

Steve is this the area you are worried about ?

  If so I would agree with Jean - it is nothing to worry about and quite acceptable in a guard of this age. There are many much more 'deformed' nakago-ana. 

 

Some designs are even distinguished by odd cut nakago-ana like this one. 

[Iaido dude]

Yes, this tsuba was discussed previously in regards to motifs. 

 

Thanks to you both for the advice. Much appreciated. I am inclined not to think of it as a deformity or damage. The area Dale circled may have had an intentional modification with a chisel for a reason that is not entirely clear. Regardless, I will leave it alone. 

[ROKUJURO]

Steve,

the intention of these TAGANE marks is absolutely clear: They were made to fit the TSUBA to a new blade. The material is pushed to the NAKAGO-ANA to make it slightly narrower. As the FUCHI/SEPPA combo cover the SEPPA-DAI, these modifications are not noticeable on a mounted TSUBA.

[Iaido dude]

Jean, I completely get that the tagane reflect a history of fitting to a blade. However the chunk that is missing is in the middle of the left edge. That seems odd. I can’t quit picture a blade that would require this modification, but then again I have very little experience with the variety of possible blade shapes that would pose a challenge. 

[ROKUJURO]

Steve,

after a few fitting changes and modifications, the material can be quite thin and brittle and just breaks off. It has certainly nothing to do with the shape of a blade.

[Iaido dude]

That makes sense. Thanks for the explanation. Now I understand how these alterations are part of the history of the guard just as repairs on tea bowls are appreciated as beautiful by the wabi-sabi-yugen aesthetics of the Momoyama and early Edo periods. 

[Iaido dude]

Gentleman, I just got my copy of Owari To Mikawa No Tanko. Plate #240 is actually my tsuba. The groove in the nakago-ana really clinches the identification. Incredible luck to have blindly purchased a $175 tsuba 25 years ago in Singapore, only to come full circle to its provenance.

 

Thanks so much, one and all for urging me not to take a blow torch to "fix" this tsuba .

 

[Curran]

14 hours ago, Iaido dude said:

Gentleman, I just got my copy of Owari To Mikawa No Tanko. Plate #240 is actually my tsuba. The groove in the nakago-ana really clinches the identification. Incredible luck to have blindly purchased a $175 tsuba 25 years ago in Singapore, only to come full circle to its provenance.

 

Thanks so much, one and all for urging me not to take a blow torch to "fix" this tsuba .

 

 

Wow. Here I was thinking that tsuba looked familiar....   Now I know why.  $175 purchase price also pops my brain a wee bit.

[Alex A]

Edit, thought someone had added seki gane but now ive got the glasses on.

[Tim Evans]

Well, that's a mind blower, finding out it is published. I wonder how it got to Singapore? The Japanese refer to that as a horidashi, or a great piece bought cheap.

[MauroP]

Kudos, finding an undervalued piece is the dream of every collector, much better IMHO than acquire a certified piece. Adding value through knowledge is the very essence of collectionism.

[Soshin]

On 7/16/2024 at 6:17 PM, Iaido dude said:

The groove in the nakago-ana really clinches the identification. Incredible luck to have blindly purchased a $175 tsuba 25 years ago in Singapore, only to come full circle to its provenance.

 

That is great news! You are incredibly lucky! I had to pay a lot of money for my Kanayama tsuba...   

[BIG]

Congrats Steve, do you have some thoughts about todays value..

 

 

[Iaido dude]

First of all, thanks one and all. I think I must have acquired this piece as part of a trade involving a sword--or who knows, I just have no recollection of it. There was just a little tag with "$175" written on it. At that time, there is no way I could have known anything about tsuba, little alone a Kanayama tsuba. One way or another, I must have thrown that crude little "accessory" into a shoe box and forgotten about it. My jaw really dropped as I flipped to page 240 and saw a photo of my little tsuba. Owari To Mikawa No Tanko was published in 1983. I lived in Singapore from 1997-2005. So a good 15-20 years in between before it ended up with me. It must have belonged in a known collection in Japan, perhaps changing hands into obscurity upon the death of the owner and being sold off or liquidated. Whether it deserves to command a higher price than it would otherwise if not published, I don't know. It's a classic example of a small Kanayama tsuba chock full of tekkotsu of every description and just dripping with wabi tea aesthetic of the Momoyama period. Compared with similar high end Kanayama tsuba in my collection and with the added value of being published, I would put the value at $1,500-$2,000. However, it is invaluable to me and inseparable from my own history as a collector. I have no plans to part with this little treasure--horidashi, as Tim writes.

 

Here is a photo of my small collection of early sukashi tsuba (the little guy is on the far right). Ignore the few iron plates on the left (all mid-late Edo), which I am selling off.

 

 

 

[Steve Waszak]

Love the story here, Steve.  And an impressive(!) collection of Owari/Kanayama tsuba.  Love your arranging of the seven guards the way you have, too.  Excellent!

 

I will quibble with your valuing of your horidashi treasure, though:  I should think it would be closer to twice as much as the dollar range you mention... It is a really good piece.  

[Iaido dude]

Thanks Steve. You will of course recognize the two excellent ex-Waszak guards flanking the centerpiece of the thunderbolt Kanayama tsuba (plate 75, Sasano gold book). The little guy is here to stay, but always good to know it’s value.