NH-0956 Rank 221
Kozuka · Ko-Gotō
Unsigned shakudō kozuka depicting Ebisu fishing among waves and rocks, in takabori with gold fukurokise iroe, attributed by the NBTHK to Ko-Gotō with Tokubetsu Hozon papers.
Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
Description
Unsigned kozuka which the NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper, issued in 2022, attributes to 古後藤 (Ko-Gotō), the name given to the work of the earliest generations of the main Gotō line, the school that served the shogunal house. The paper titles it 恵比寿図小柄 (Ebisu-zu kozuka) and describes it as 赤銅地 (shakudō-ji), 高彫 (takabori), 袋着色絵 (fukurokise iroe). The plate shows Ebisu, god of fishermen and prosperity, seated on sea-beaten rocks with his rod stretched out towards a golden fish that has taken the hook. Figure, rocks and waves are carved in high relief; the god's robe, the rod and the fish are in applied gold, and the swell of the background is drawn with fine chisel lines. The photographs show a deep black shakudō patina, with the characteristic warm tone on the high points, and the gold almost entirely intact. The plain reverse has fine scratches and slight wear revealing the copper at one end. The weight is 30.1 g according to the original seller. It comes in a plain wooden box without inscription.
Strong points
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper (2022)
- Attributed to Ko-Gotō, the early work of the main Gotō line
- Ebisu fishing, in takabori with gold fukurokise iroe
- Deep shakudō patina and almost intact gold
Points to bear in mind
- Unsigned: the Ko-Gotō attribution comes from the paper and names no individual master
- Fine scratches and slight wear on the plain reverse, with copper showing at one end
- The Momoyama dating is given by the original seller; the paper does not state a period
Score breakdown
55.2/100
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 7.2 of 10 Rank 17 of 59 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest