Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
Shakudō kozuka with a nanako ground and wagtails (sekirei) over a flowing stream, in takabori with gold and silver, signed by Nakagawa Katsutsugu with kaō.
Kozuka signed on the reverse 作陽住中川勝継 (Sakuyō-jū Nakagawa Katsutsugu), followed by the maker's kaō. According to the original seller, Katsutsugu came from the Doi family, was adopted by his predecessor Katsumasa, served as a retained craftsman to the Matsudaira of Mimasaka province and studied carving for two years under Yasuda Hōjō; his sons included Shōami Katsuyoshi, Nakagawa Isshō and Nakagawa Itteki. The photographs show a shakudō obverse with a fine, regular nanako ground on which three sekirei (wagtails) fly and alight beside a flowing stream: the birds in takabori with gold iroe on bellies and eyes, the waves in silver, with fine kebori in the feathers and spray. The reverse is polished shakudō (migaki) with a cleanly engraved signature. Condition appears good: crisp nanako, gold and silver intact and an even patina, with very light rubbing on the reverse. The original seller declares an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper and dimensions of 9.7 × 1.46 cm; the paper does not appear in the photographs.
Strong points
- Full signature with kaō: 作陽住中川勝継 (Sakuyō-jū Nakagawa Katsutsugu)
- Three sekirei in takabori with gold and silver iroe
- Fine, regular shakudō nanako ground
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper declared by the original seller
Points to bear in mind
- The paper does not appear in the photographs; it rests only on the original seller's declaration
- No photographs of the edges
- Period inferred from the maker's active years and style; the piece is not dated
Score
59.7 / 100
- Maker 19 of 25 Genuine signature of a known maker or school
- Workmanship 15 of 20 Notable work
- Condition 14 of 18 Good condition
- Period 5 of 12 Late Edo (1781–1868)
- Paper 4 of 10 NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Extras 0 of 5 No complete set by the same maker and no inscribed box
- Price 2.7 of 10 Rank 78 of 107 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest
The score shares out 100 points: Maker 25 · Workmanship 20 · Condition 18 · Period 12 · Paper 10 · Extras 5 · Price 10. It is computed from the record, not from an opinion. Maker, workmanship, condition and period are judged from the photographs and the paper; price is compared only with fittings of the same type.
Details
- Type
- Kozuka
- Maker
- Nakagawa Katsutsugu
- Period
- Late Edo (1781–1868)
- Material
- Shakudō, Gold, Silver
- Paper
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Signature
- Signed
- Inscription
- 作陽住中川勝継 花押 (Sakuyō-jū Nakagawa Katsutsugu kaō)
- Technique
- Nanako (fish-roe ground), Takabori (high relief), Iroe (coloured inlay), Kebori (line engraving), Migaki (burnished)
- Dating
- Late Edo period (19th century)