NH-0763 Rank 142
Tsuba · Okamoto Naoshige (Tetsugendō)
岡本尚茂 (Okamoto Naoshige)
Pierced and sculpted iron tsuba with Sangokushi scenes, inlaid in gold and silver, signed Okamoto Naoshige with kaō and papered NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu.
Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
Description
Tate-maru tsuba signed 岡本尚茂 (Okamoto Naoshige) with kaō on the seppa-dai. According to the original seller, Naoshige is the early name of the first 鉄元堂正楽 (Tetsugendō Shōraku), a Kyoto master renowned for scenes of Chinese and Japanese figures in iron with relief and colour. The guard depicts episodes from the Sangokushi (Romance of the Three Kingdoms): a warrior with banner and polearm, another armed figure on the reverse, and an old man leading a gold-spotted ox, among trees and vines. The iron is worked in nikubori ji-sukashi, sculpted relief with a pierced ground, and enriched with gold and silver inlay; the face and hands of one warrior are in silver. The rim carries a gilt fukurin with diagonal hatching. The photographs show a dark, stable patina with no active rust and the inlays complete; the fukurin shows a faint reddish tone on the edge. The original seller gives 66.8 × 63.1 mm, 5.6 mm thickness and 93 g, and a fitted paulownia box. It comes with an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper, no. 2010250, dated 10 October 2023, recording the signature of Okamoto Naoshige with kaō.
Strong points
- Signed Okamoto Naoshige with kaō, signature recorded by the paper
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper (2023)
- Sangokushi scene in sculpted and pierced iron
- Gold and silver inlay with very fine detail in faces and garments
- Dark, stable patina with no active rust
Points to bear in mind
- The dating and the identification of Naoshige with the first Tetsugendō Shōraku come from the original seller; the paper gives no date for the piece
- Faint reddish tone on the edge of the fukurin, possibly wear to the gilding
- Very dense, decorative composition
Score breakdown
59.1/100
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 19 of 25 Genuine signature of a known maker or school
- 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 2.1 of 10 Rank 180 of 228 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest