NH-0607 Rank 283
Tsuba · Katsuhira
勝平 (Katsuhira)
Polished iron tsuba of aoi-mokkō shape with inome openwork, accompanied by three engraved shakudō ō-seppa signed 生涼軒勝平 (Seiryōken Katsuhira); NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper.
Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
Description
An unsigned tsuba attributed by its NBTHK paper to Hagiya Katsuhira, one of the leading masters of Mito kinkō in the late Edo period, official engraver to the Mito domain and teacher of many pupils. The plate is iron with a polished surface (migaki-ji), in four-lobed aoi-mokkō shape, pierced with four heart-shaped inome and finished with a triple-ridged mimi. It comes with three shakudō ō-seppa with ishime ground, engraved in katakiri-bori and kebori with a dense karakusa scroll, covering almost the whole face of the guard; one bears the signature 生涼軒勝平 (Seiryōken Katsuhira) with kaō, accepted by the paper. The photographs show iron with a dark, stable patina, with no active rust or visible cracks. Certificate 特別保存刀装具 (Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu) no. 2010704, dated July 2024, describes the ensemble as a tsuba with inome openwork and karakusa design. According to the original seller it measures 8.19 × 7.87 cm, 0.59 cm at the seppadai, and weighs 208 g; it comes in a paulownia box.
Strong points
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper no. 2010704 (2024)
- Attributed by the paper to Hagiya Katsuhira, a great master of Mito kinkō
- Three engraved shakudō ō-seppa with karakusa, signed with kaō
- Polished iron in aoi-mokkō shape with four inome piercings
Points to bear in mind
- The tsuba is mumei: its authorship is an attribution by the paper; the signature is on the seppa
- The photographs are small and do not allow a close assessment of the engraving or surface
- The original seller describes the seppa ground as nanako; the paper gives it as ishime
Score breakdown
51.2/100
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.
- Maker 15 of 25 Unsigned, attributed by the paper to a master
- Workmanship 10 of 20 Good 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 3.2 of 10 Rank 156 of 228 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest