Kantei

NH-0739 Rank 73

Kozuka · Hirata Dōnin

平田道仁 (Hirata Dōnin)

Polished shakudō kozuka with a country house and a rooster at dawn in shippō enamel and gold, attributed by the NBTHK to the first Hirata Dōnin and designated Jūyō Kodōgu in 1975.

KozukaMomoyama (1573–1615)Momoyama period (late 16th century)NBTHK Jūyō Tōsōgu

Photographs by the seller at origin.

Description

Unsigned kozuka attributed to Hirata Dōnin, founder of the Hirata school, the family that brought shippō enamel to sword fittings and handed it down from father to son in the service of the Tokugawa. The paper attributes it to the first-generation Dōnin. The subject is a thatched country house with a rooster perched on the roof, as if announcing daybreak; a small red disc marks the sun. The scene, an applied high-relief plaque, combines turquoise, green, red and white enamel with generous gold on a polished shakudō ground. The photographs show the enamel and gilding essentially intact; the ground and the plain reverse carry fine wear scratches, with no rust or knocks. The paper gives dimensions of 9.65 × 1.45 cm. Designated 重要小道具 (Jūyō Kodōgu) at the 23rd NBTHK session on 1 July 1975; it comes with the certificate, the designation description sheet and a plain wooden box.

Strong points

  • NBTHK Jūyō Kodōgu designation (23rd session, 1975)
  • Attributed by the paper to the first Hirata Dōnin, founder of the Hirata shippō school
  • Uncommon subject: a rooster at dawn on a country house
  • Vivid shippō enamel and gold on polished shakudō
  • Momoyama period according to the paper

Points to bear in mind

  • Unsigned: the authorship is an attribution by the paper
  • Fine wear scratches on the shakudō ground and the plain reverse
  • The box carries no hakogaki

Score breakdown

63/100

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 15 of 25 Unsigned, attributed by the paper to a master
  2. Workmanship 15 of 20 Notable work
  3. Condition 14 of 18 Good condition
  4. Period 11 of 12 Momoyama (1573–1615)
  5. Paper 8 of 10 NBTHK Jūyō Tōsōgu
  6. Extras 0 of 5 No complete set by the same maker and no inscribed box
  7. Price 0 of 10 Rank 59 of 59 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest