NH-0887 Rank 168
Fuchi-kashira · Ko-Kinkō
Shakudō nanako fuchi-kashira with a pride of gilt shishi in high relief, unsigned and attributed to the Ko-Kinkō school by an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper.
Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
Description
An unsigned fuchi-kashira attributed by the NBTHK paper to the Ko-Kinkō school, the term used for the work of metalworkers active before the Edo period that cannot be assigned to the Gotō or to another defined school. The subject is a pride of shishi (gunshishi-zu): on the fuchi, several gilt shishi stride and play around the collar; on the kashira, the shishi emerge at the corners and leave the dome plain. The ground is shakudō with fine, regular nanako in rows, and the reliefs are worked in ura-uchidashi, embossed from the reverse, as the hollows visible inside the fuchi show; both pieces have a gilt rim. According to the original seller, the kashira measures 3.3 cm and the fuchi 3.8 cm, with a height of 1.1 cm. The photographs show a natural shakudō patina, the gilding intact with only light rubbing on the high points, and just stable age marks inside the kashira. The NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper, no. 228986, dated 30 October 2009, describes the piece as mumei, Ko-Kinkō, in shakudō nanako with takabori, gilding and a gold rim. It comes in a fitted kiri wood box.
Strong points
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper (no. 228986, 2009)
- Pride of gilt shishi in embossed high relief (ura-uchidashi)
- Shakudō ground with fine, regular nanako
- Well-preserved original patina and gilding
- Fitted kiri wood box
Points to bear in mind
- Unsigned: a school attribution (Ko-Kinkō), not a maker
- The Momoyama dating is stated by the original seller; the paper does not specify it
- Age marks and stable surface oxidation inside the kashira
Score breakdown
58/100
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 11 of 12 Momoyama (1573–1615)
- Paper 4 of 10 NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Extras 0 of 5 No complete set by the same maker and no inscribed box
- Price 10 of 10 Rank 1 of 27 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest