Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
Round iron tsuba of the Ōnin school, unsigned, with openwork bracken shoots and a band of inlaid brass dots; NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper.
Round (marugata) iron tsuba with a rounded rim (marumimi), unsigned and attributed by its NBTHK paper to the Ōnin school. The school takes its name from the Ōnin era (1467–1469) of the Muromachi period, to which tradition assigns its earliest works: thin iron plates decorated with inlaid brass dots and lines. Here two bracken shoots (warabi), pierced in kage-sukashi, curl beside the central opening, while a broad outer band, set off by an engraved line, is covered with rows of brass dots. According to the original seller it measures 8.0 × 8.0 cm and weighs 84 g. The photographs show iron with a dark, stable patina, the texture of an old surface and no active rust; a good number of brass dots are missing, especially on the reverse, and the central opening has irregular edges from fitting. The NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper, dated 10 March 2020, describes it as a warabi-sukashi tsuba, mumei, Ōnin. It comes with a wooden box bearing a handwritten inscription and seal (hakogaki).
Strong points
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper (2020), attributed to the Ōnin school
- Muromachi-period work from one of the oldest tsuba schools
- Bracken shoots pierced in kage-sukashi, a restrained and expressive design
- Outer band of inlaid brass dots, the hallmark of the school
- Wooden box with hakogaki
Points to bear in mind
- Unsigned: the attribution is to a school, not to an individual maker
- Numerous brass dots are missing, especially on the reverse
- The central opening has irregular edges from old fitting adjustments
Score
55 / 100
- Maker 9 of 25 Attributed to a school only
- Workmanship 10 of 20 Good work
- Condition 9 of 18 Visible wear
- Period 12 of 12 Muromachi or earlier (before 1573)
- Paper 4 of 10 NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Extras 2 of 5 Adds: box inscribed by an expert (hakogaki)
- Price 9 of 10 Rank 35 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
- 応仁 (Ōnin)
- Period
- Muromachi or earlier (before 1573)
- Material
- Iron, Brass
- Paper
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Signature
- Unsigned (mumei)
- Technique
- Sukashi (openwork), Zōgan (inlay), Kebori (line engraving)
- Dating
- Muromachi period (15th–16th century)
- Paper number
- 2006308
- Paper date
- 10 March 2020
- Attribution on the paper
- 応仁 (Ōnin)
- Extras
- box inscribed by an expert (hakogaki)