Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
Pierced and carved iron tsuba with the Takasago theme, signed by Unrinsai Naomori of the Sōheishi school of Hikone, with gold and silver inlay.
A tate-marugata tsuba (7.6 × 7.3 cm according to the original seller) in polished iron, worked in nikubori ji-sukashi: the ground is pierced and the motifs are modelled in relief. It depicts the Takasago theme: beneath a great pine with a crane perched in its branches, the elderly couple stand among bamboo, rocks and a stream. The figures' robes are in gold with fine geometric patterns, and the face and hair of one of them in silver; the field is scattered with gold dots and the hitsu-ana has a gold lining. The signature, chiselled on both sides of the seppa-dai, reads on the front 雲隣斎直盛彫之 (Unrinsai Naomori kore o horu) and on the back 江州彦根住藻柄子 (Gōshū Hikone-jū Sōheishi): a work by Naomori of the Sōheishi school of Hikone, in Ōmi province. The photographs show a stable black patina with no active rust, light rubbing on the rounded mimi and slight wear to the gold lining of the hitsu-ana. The original seller declares an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper and a paulownia wood box; the paper does not appear in the photographs.
Strong points
- Signed on both faces: Unrinsai Naomori, Sōheishi of Hikone
- Takasago scene in high, well-modelled nikubori ji-sukashi
- Gold robes with fine patterns and silver details
- Stable black patina, no active rust
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper declared by the original seller
Points to bear in mind
- The declared paper does not appear in the photographs
- Light rubbing on the mimi and slight wear to the gold lining of the hitsu-ana
- The period is inferred from style; the signature is undated
Score
62 / 100
- 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 5 of 10 Rank 167 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
- Maker
- Sōheishi Naomori
- Period
- Late Edo (1781–1868)
- Material
- Iron, Gold, Silver
- Paper
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Signature
- Signed
- School
- Sōheishi (Hikone)
- Inscription
- 雲隣斎直盛彫之 (Unrinsai Naomori kore o horu) / 江州彦根住藻柄子 (Gōshū Hikone-jū Sōheishi)
- Technique
- Sukashi (openwork), Takabori (high relief), Zōgan (inlay), Iroe (coloured inlay)
- Dating
- Late Edo period (18th–19th century)