NH-0729 Rank 193
Tsuba · Ōnin
Iron mokkō-shaped tsuba of the Ōnin school, with a pierced gourd and dense inlaid brass dots; NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper.
Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
Description
Unsigned tsuba attributed by its NBTHK paper to the Ōnin school, one of the earliest workshops to decorate iron guards with brass inlay. The plate, of mokkō shape (木瓜形, mokkō-gata) with a rounded rim (丸耳, maru-mimi), is pierced in negative silhouette (陰透, kage-sukashi) with a hyōtan gourd, outlined in brass wire that joins a large circle framing the central field. Between that circle and the rim run three rows of inlaid brass dots, the arare (hailstone) motif that gives the piece its name: 瓢箪透霰象嵌鐔 (hyōtan-sukashi arare-zōgan tsuba). An oval hitsu-ana sits beside the central opening. The photographs show iron with an organic surface and a dark, stable patina, no visible active rust, and the brass inlays intact. According to the original seller it measures 6.69 × 6.72 cm, 0.28 cm thick, weighs 60 g and comes in a paulownia box. The Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper (特別保存刀装具, tokubetsu hozon tōsōgu), no. 2011202, dated 20 December 2024, describes it as 無銘 応仁 (mumei Ōnin).
Strong points
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper (2024), attributed to the Ōnin school
- Hyōtan gourd pierced in kage-sukashi and outlined in brass
- Three complete rows of brass dots (arare-zōgan)
- Iron with a dark, stable patina and no visible active rust
Points to bear in mind
- Unsigned: a school attribution, not an individual maker
- The central opening shows irregular notches at its ends, traces of old fitting adjustments
- Dimensions and weight as stated by the original seller
Score breakdown
56.7/100
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 10 of 20 Good work
- Condition 14 of 18 Good condition
- Period 12 of 12 Muromachi or earlier (before 1573)
- Paper 4 of 10 NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Extras 0 of 5 No complete set by the same maker and no inscribed box
- Price 7.7 of 10 Rank 53 of 228 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest