NH-0713 Rank 326
Tsuba daishō · Kyō-kenjō
Unsigned daishō pair of iron tsuba, pierced as a wheel and covered in gold inlay, attributed by the NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper to the Kyō-kenjō school.
Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
Description
Unsigned daishō pair of tsuba attributed by the NBTHK paper to the Kyō-kenjō school of Kyoto, known for iron grounds inlaid with gold geometric patterns. The paper describes the set as 車透模様尽図大小鐔 (kuruma-sukashi moyō-zukushi-zu daishō tsuba): mokkō-shaped guards of polished iron (migaki-ji) with inlay (zōgan) and a dote-mimi rim. The photographs show twelve spokes pierced like those of a wheel around an oval seppa-dai covered with gold seigaiha waves; each spoke and the outer ring carry a different pattern — asanoha, kikkō, sayagata, clouds, lattices — and the rim repeats a gold raimon fret. The hitsu-ana are edged in gold, and the kōgai opening retains a dark plug. As to condition, the gold appears complete and crisp over almost the entire surface; there are small reddish spots of surface rust on parts of the iron and sekigane in the central opening of both guards. According to the original seller, the larger guard measures 7.44 × 6.90 × 0.50 cm (103 g) and the smaller 7.0 × 6.50 × 0.44 cm (93 g), and both are kept in a paulownia box. Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper no. 2010547, dated 26 March 2024.
Strong points
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper for the pair
- Matching daishō pair, preserved complete
- Dense, precise gold inlay with a different pattern on every spoke
- Dote-mimi rim decorated with a gold raimon fret
Points to bear in mind
- Unsigned: the paper gives a school attribution, not a maker
- Small spots of reddish surface rust on the iron
- Sekigane in the central opening of both guards
- The paper does not date the pair; the period is inferred from style
Score breakdown
48.7/100
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 9 of 25 Attributed to a school only
- 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 1.7 of 10 Rank 190 of 228 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest