NH-0760 Rank 366
Tsuba · Sōten
Unsigned iron tsuba depicting the legend of Kyoyū and Sōho in high relief with gold and silver inlay, attributed to Sōten by its NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tosogu paper.
Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
Description
Tate-maru tsuba (round, slightly taller than wide) on an iron plate, unsigned and attributed to Sōten by the NBTHK paper. It depicts the Chinese legend of Kyoyū and Sōho (Xu You and Chao Fu): on the front, Kyoyū beside a waterfall raises his hand to his ear to wash it after being offered the throne, while below Sōho leads his ox away so it will not drink the tainted water; the back continues with a mountain landscape, a thatched hut and two figures. The dense scene, in the characteristic manner of the Sōten school, is worked in sukidashi-takabori with gold, silver and copper colour inlays (zōgan iroe), pines, bamboo and rocks, framed by a sukinokoshi-mimi rim. According to the original seller it measures about 7.95 × 7.42 cm and 0.9 cm thick. The photographs show the inlays almost complete and crisp relief; the iron patina has reddish patches of surface rust on the ground and the rim, and the central opening carries copper sekigane. The Tokubetsu Hozon Tosogu paper, no. 2000177, is dated 2012.
Strong points
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tosogu paper (2012) attributing it to Sōten
- Classic Kyoyū and Sōho theme developed across both faces
- Sukidashi-takabori with gold, silver and copper inlay
- Inlays virtually complete
Points to bear in mind
- Unsigned: paper attribution to Sōten, a name that largely denotes a school style
- Reddish patches of surface rust on the ground and rim
- Copper sekigane in the central opening
- Period inferred from style; the paper does not state it
Score breakdown
43.9/100
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 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 1.9 of 10 Rank 185 of 228 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest