Any idea on the motif of this tsuba?

[Souljah]

I just won an auction of my first tsuba today and would like to know if my guessing is right. I did some research and I think that its Hotei guiding a child through darkness, but as I am totally uneducated on this kind of stuff, I would like to know if there's some other story behind it. The writing on the right says "Child with opened eyes" or "open your eyes", at least that's what Google translate says. Thx.

[Matsunoki]

Child helping a heavily treasure laden Hotei cross a river under a full moon.  Not sure if it’s a specific story. 

[Souljah]

That makes more sense, because of the child being in front of Hotei.

I've found this picture of hotai carrying a child through a river.

And an other picture with the writing "The eye that regards the innocent child / is a friendly soul outside this soiled world"

[Stephen]

[Spartancrest]

Information on the theme and other examples of tsuba found here:

 

[SteveM]

3 hours ago, Souljah said:

The writing on the right says "Child with opened eyes" or "open your eyes", at least that's what Google translate says.

 

開眼子 (literally, "child with opened eyes") is the "art name" of the artist, Kanezui. The use of "child" in the art name, and the image of the child on the tsuba, is coincidental. 

 

The theme of Hotei with a child (particularly, a child in Chinese dress from the Tang dynasty) is an often-used motif. You can find other examples if you search for Hotei with Tang-dynasty Child (布袋唐子).  I don't know the meaning or the origin (well, I guess the origin is Tang China).

[Souljah]

Thx to all. Interesting to see other examples of this motif on different tsuba and the thing with his nickname. Haven't found that.

[Bugyotsuji]

Steve, it is possible that the tsuba-ko made this his art name in homage to Hotei’s child.

[Stephen]

My interpretation: Hotei showing the child choices in life, the boat in the seven gods of luck,  (I forgot the name of the boat dang it) its the child's decision on which path to take. 

 

In the boat.

 

The Seven Gods of Luck, or Shichifukujin, are often depicted on a New Year's Treasure Ship: 

The seven gods are:

 

Ebisu: The god of fishing, agriculture, and trade, and the only deity with Shinto origins among the Shichifukujin. 

Bishamonten: A protector of the righteous, and one of the Four Heavenly Kings in Buddhism. 

 

Daikokuten: Based on both the Shinto deity Ōkuninushi-no-Mikoto and the Hindu deity Shiva. 

 

Fukurokuju: The god of wisdom, luck, longevity, wealth, and happiness. 

Benzaiten: The goddess of literature, music, and femininity, and the only goddess among the Shichifukujin. 

 

Jurōjin: The god of longevity and wisdom, often depicted with a stag at his side. 

 

Hotei: Also known as Budai, the god of happiness and abundance, often depicted as a Buddhist monk with a prominent belly. 

[Souljah]

Any opinion if this is genuine hamano kenzui (2nd generation hamano) or gimei? It's too late anyway, but I would like to know.

[Geraint]

Dear Michael.

 

Please bear in mind that I know nothing.  When I first saw this I was worried by the treatment of the cloud over the face of the moon, given that one might expect the cloud to be dark/shakudo rather than silver.  On reflection I find the textured treatment of the other side rather stiff and uninspired.  Also the face of Hotei and the child......  Just not sure about this one.  Hope to be wrong in every regard.

 

All the best.

 

[Souljah]

Thx, every opinion is welcome and appreciated.

Edit: Actually we have a cloudy evening, it's already dark and I've taken a photo of the moon. I think it depends on the clouds, as you can see, that the moon is fully visible through the clouds. Everything is dark and the clouds are not that thick, so the moon shines through and makes the clouds in front of it "invisible". But that's only one of your concerns...

Any opinion on the Mei?

[Spartancrest]

Some older threads here with discussion of the mei 

 

 

 

[Souljah]

Hello Dale, thx for your help. I lack of knowledge and experience in comparing Mei, but If I try to, it looks like same characters, but a little difference in the strokes and their direction.

So I assume it's gimei. Am I right?

Are there any other hints where my tsuba came from? Any opinion on it? Thx so much.

[Matsunoki]

Michael, I think you are correct….gimei. With Kinko tsuba I always first look at the quality of the work and that alone will tell you if it is by someone really good, and sadly this tsuba is not of that quality. A lot of work has gone into it but the refinement and artistry is clumsy especially as mentioned earlier the faces and the way the moon is done. It is very common to find “tribute” signatures of famous makers on mixed metal tsuba. Personally that never worries me if the quality is good enough (depending of course on the price)…..some carrying tribute (or fake to be blunt) signatures can still be staggering quality and that alone can justify purchase…..imo!