Fuchi, Tsuba

[Widok4]

Please some help translation.

 

Tsuba (1)

 

 

 

Fuchi

 

 

Tsuba (2)

 

 

 

 

Kind regards

Janusz

[k morita]

Hi,

Eiju-ken, Motokage + kao.

[reinhard]

Janusz, the name on the left side is: SHOZUI. This is a very big name usually associated with the founder of the Hamano-school.

 

reinhard

[John A Stuart]

Kankei Shozui, and the quality is superb. Just look at the way the old grandfather tree is rendered. Mastery!! John

[reinhard]

Checked the mei and it looks pretty good. Workmanship is also promising from a distance.

Please handle this tsuba with care.

 

regards

 

reinhard

[Equinox]

The kanji on tsuba 1 translate to great warrior or big warrior 大士. I'm afraid i don't know a lot about tsuba so i can't really tell if that has any relivence other than as decoration, but i hope it helps anyway.

 

regards

 

David

[Nobody]

I think that 大士 (Daiji/Daishi) usually means bodhisattva.

Ref. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhisattva

[Lorenzo]

And the relative tsuba, the one with rustic style and punched marks is a Yamashiro Tenpo; see here

 

I wholeheartedly agree with Reinhard.. beautiful soft metal tsuba, please have great care of it.

[Widok4]

Thanks, everyone for the information!

 

Janusz

[Equinox]

@Nobody

 

Really? I'll have to file that away for future reference, I have always used 菩薩 bosatsu in the past for bodhisattva. Learn something new everyday. If I may ask is it still pronounced daishi? I can't find it in any of my dictionary's as a compound. (sorry if its a bit off topic kanji are something of an obsession for me at the moment).

 

The tsuba are beautiful by the way.

 

Thanks

[Nobody]

RE: Daishi/Daiji

I could find only Japanese texts.

Ref. Dictionary: http://www.weblio.jp/content/%E5%A4%A7%E5%A3%AB

Ref. Origin: http://www.higashihonganji.or.jp/book/s ... nge34.html

[Bugyotsuji]

Koichi sama, what about the second meaning in your dictionary? 道心堅固な僧を敬っていう語。

 

In other words, an expression praising a monk who is steadfast in the way (of Buddha).

 

Or, http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/leaf/jn2/133268/m0u/

 

悟りを求める心を起こした人。道心堅固な僧。"Someone who has set his heart to realize enlightenment".

[Nobody]

The second meaning is also possible. But I think that it is rather unsuitable in this case, because it is only an honorable title without a specific name.

[Widok4]

last purchase, please help

 

Tsuba 1, 2 :

 

 

 

[Widok4]

Tsuba 2, 4 :

 

 

 

 

 

 

best regards

Janusz

[John A Stuart]

What is the signature on iron tsuba with the shakudo plug? 雨重 makes no sense, but maybe Chikashige 爾重. It is hard to read the first kanji. John

[Nobody]

Isn't it 國重 - Kunishige?

[John A Stuart]

Makes sense; Haynes does mention a kinko tsubako Kunishige that died ca. 1800 of a two kanji signature with a strange 'kuni' kanji. H 03659.0 John

[Curran]

John, Lorenzo, and Reinhard,

 

I thought about whether to speak up on this one.... I needed some time to get my books out of storage after the house move and also to consult the Shozui (aka. Masayuki) I have owned. Both had NBTHK Hozon papers.

 

I'm 97.5% sure this tsuba is gimei. I like it, but think the signature is too far from a large sample pool with some particular "oops..." in places were Shozui was incredibly consistent. One missing part of the Yuki character in particular jumps out at me and is the quick litmus test most of the time.

I paused because the workmanship is very good and says to me very skilled Hamano, but reminds me of later Hamano work by some of the skilled artist in that school. The tree in particular makes me think of a particular late edo branch of the school (sorry for the pun).

 

Go back and hit the books and look at the "Yuki" character in particular. Several things wrong with it, even as much as I try to allow for variation in Shozui's signature. If I can learn to use Photoshop a bit, maybe I can put up an illustrative dissection.

 

I'm leaving a 2.5% margin of error here because I've seen considered genuine menuki by Shozui that have one or two distinct variations close to what is going on with this signature, but don't think it that close.