Kantei

NH-0584 Rank 91

Tsuba · Masakuni

肥前唐津正國 (Hizen Karatsu Masakuni)

Round iron tsuba with peonies and butterflies in relief and openwork, signed Hizen Karatsu Masakuni, with NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu papers.

TsubaMid-Edo (1688–1781)Mid-Edo period (18th century)NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu

Photographs by the seller at origin.

Description

Tsuba signed 肥前唐津 正國 (Hizen Karatsu Masakuni), a craftsman of Hizen province active in the mid-Edo period and connected with the Itō line of Odawara. The subject is peonies and butterflies (botan ni chō), worked in iron in a round shape (maru-gata) with modelled relief (nikubori) and a pierced ground (ji-sukashi): flowers, leaves and butterflies fill the whole surface around the central opening. There are two hitsu-ana, one of them closed with a gilt plug, and the rim is square in section (kaku-mimi). The photographs show an even dark-brown iron patina, with no active rust and no breaks in the openwork; the central opening carries copper sekigane. The signature reads clearly on the front. The NBTHK paper, dated April 1996, certifies it as Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu and accepts the signature. According to the original seller, the piece is published in the signature reference Kinkō Meikan (p. 403), whose page is reproduced in the photographs, and it is kept in a paulownia box with cushion. Dimensions stated by the original seller: 7.15 × 6.95 cm, 0.6 cm thick at the seppa-dai, 100 g.

Strong points

  • Legible signature, accepted by the paper
  • NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper (1996)
  • Peonies and butterflies in nikubori with pierced ground
  • Published in the Kinkō Meikan (p. 403)

Points to bear in mind

  • The photographs are small; condition can only be judged in general terms
  • One hitsu-ana is closed with a gilt plug and the central opening has sekigane

Score breakdown

61.4/100

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.

  1. Maker 19 of 25 Genuine signature of a known maker or school
  2. Workmanship 10 of 20 Good work
  3. Condition 14 of 18 Good condition
  4. Period 7 of 12 Mid-Edo (1688–1781)
  5. Paper 4 of 10 NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
  6. Extras 0 of 5 No complete set by the same maker and no inscribed box
  7. Price 7.4 of 10 Rank 59 of 228 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest