NH-0735 Rank 178
Tsuba · Ko-Katchūshi
Round tsuba of hammered iron with an abstract openwork design, unsigned and attributed by its NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper to the early Ko-Katchūshi armourers of the Muromachi period.
Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
Description
Unsigned round tsuba (marugata) which the NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper attributes to the Ko-Katchūshi (古甲冑師), the early armourers to whom tradition assigns iron guards of the Muromachi period. The plate is iron, thin and flat, with a hammered surface (tsuchime-ji) and a folded-over rim (uchikaeshi-mimi) that strengthens it. The paper describes it as a mon'yō-sukashi tsuba: the openwork, cut in negative silhouette (in-sukashi), forms an elongated teardrop shape ending in a small circle, facing an oval opening on the other side of the central aperture. The photographs show both faces with a stable black patina, the grain of the iron and the hammer marks clearly visible, with no active red rust or noticeable cracks; the edges of the openwork and the rim are sound. The original seller gives approximate dimensions of 83.9 × 83.6 mm, 3.3 mm thick and 66 g. It is presented in a wooden box with a cushion, without inscription. NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu certificate no. 2010799, dated 2 July 2024.
Strong points
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper (2024)
- Attributed by the paper to the Ko-Katchūshi, Muromachi period
- Well-forged hammered iron with a stable black patina
- Thin plate with uchikaeshi-mimi rim
- Restrained openwork of great economy of form
Points to bear in mind
- Unsigned: the attribution is to a group of craftsmen, not to an individual maker
- The period is inferred from the attribution; the paper does not date it
- Dimensions and weight as given by the original seller
Score breakdown
57.5/100
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 8.5 of 10 Rank 36 of 228 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest