NH-0960 Rank 126
Tsuba · Ōnin
Round iron tsuba of the Ōnin school, with a pierced butterfly, crests and flowering branches inlaid in brass on both faces. NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper.
Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
Description
An unsigned (mumei) tsuba attributed by its paper to the Ōnin school, one of the earliest workshops to decorate iron guards with brass inlay, active in the Muromachi period. The thin round (marugata) plate opens at the top into a large butterfly-shaped piercing, a family crest motif, outlined by a brass line. Around it run circular barred crests, branches with leaves and flowers, scattered dots and a line following the whole rim, with the same scheme on both faces; there is a single hitsu-ana. The composition is richer than that of ordinary Ōnin guards, which are limited to dots and lines. According to the original seller it measures 8.4 × 8.3 cm, 0.4 cm thick at the seppa-dai, and weighs 110 g. The photographs show iron with a dark, stable patina and a few brownish areas of old rust, and the inlay complete with no losses; the brass is rather bright. It comes in a wooden box with a cushion, with no visible inscription. The NBTHK paper, Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu dated December 1991, describes it as an iron tsuba with small piercing and brass inlay and attributes it to Ōnin.
Strong points
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper (1991) attributing it to the Ōnin school
- Large butterfly crest piercing, uncommon within the school
- Complete brass inlay, decorated on both faces
- One of the oldest schools of inlaid tsuba, Muromachi period
Points to bear in mind
- Unsigned: a school attribution, not a maker
- The period is inferred from the school; the paper gives no date of making
- Areas of old, stable rust on the iron; the very bright brass may point to an old cleaning
Score breakdown
59.6/100
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 15 of 20 Notable work
- Condition 14 of 18 Good condition
- Period 12 of 12 Muromachi or earlier (before 1573)
- Paper 4 of 10 NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Extras 0 of 5 No complete set by the same maker and no inscribed box
- Price 5.6 of 10 Rank 101 of 228 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest