Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
Unsigned shakudō tsuba with clouds and surging waves in high relief and inlaid gold dots, attributed by the original seller to the Chishiki school of Satsuma.
Unsigned (mumei) tsuba attributed by the original seller to the Chishiki school, one of the two great workshops of Satsuma province alongside the Oda school, with masters such as Kanenori, Kanetake and Kaneatsu. The plate, of blue-black shakudō on a hammered (tsuchime) ground, shows on both faces clouds streaming across the upper part and breaking waves below. Clouds and waves are carved in takabori and refined with kebori, while the spray is suggested by small inlaid gold dots scattered over the water. The photographs show an even patina, crisp relief and the gold intact; there are mounting marks on the seppa-dai, slight wear on the rim and copper sekigane in the central opening. The original seller gives dimensions of 79.8 × 73.1 mm, 4.25 mm thickness at the seppa-dai and 182.8 g, and declares an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper and a paulownia box, neither of which appears in the photographs.
Strong points
- Shakudō on a hammered (tsuchime) ground with a fine patina
- Clouds and waves in takabori with kebori detail on both faces
- Spray rendered with inlaid gold dots
- Chishiki school of Satsuma, according to the original seller
Points to bear in mind
- Unsigned: attributed to a school, not to an individual maker
- The declared Tokubetsu Hozon paper does not appear in the photographs
- Copper sekigane in the central opening and mounting marks on the seppa-dai
Score
49.9 / 100
- Maker 9 of 25 Attributed to a school only
- 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 2.9 of 10 Rank 236 of 330 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest
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.
Details
- Type
- Tsuba
- School
- 知識派 (Chishiki-ha)
- Period
- Late Edo (1781–1868)
- Material
- Shakudō, Gold, Copper
- Paper
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Signature
- Unsigned (mumei)
- Technique
- Takabori (high relief), Kebori (line engraving), Zōgan (inlay), Other technique
- Dating
- Late Edo period (18th–19th century)