Kantei

NH-0982 Rank 189

Tsuba · Ko-Kacchūshi

Round tsuba of hammered iron, pierced with scattered mushrooms, flowers and sprout shapes, unsigned and attributed to the Ko-Kacchūshi school by an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper.

TsubaMuromachi or earlier (before 1573)Muromachi period (15th–16th century)NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu

Photographs by the seller at origin.

Description

Unsigned (mumei) round (marugata) tsuba of iron with a hammered surface (tsuchime-ji). The plate carries positive openwork scattered freely across the field: mushrooms, a cluster of five-lobed flowers, a single flower, sprout shapes with a small dot and an oval; the theme the paper calls 紋様散し透鐔 (mon'yō chirashi sukashi tsuba, "tsuba pierced with scattered motifs"). The simple, balanced design is typical of the early iron tsuba grouped under the name Ko-Kacchūshi, the old armourers' school. According to the original seller it measures 8.8 × 8.7 cm, 0.3 cm thick at the seppa-dai, and weighs 103 g. The photographs show a stable black patina on both faces and the rim, with no active rust or cracks, and slight brownish tones on the walls of the central opening and some piercings. There are no sekigane. The NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper attributes it to the 古甲冑師 (Ko-Kacchūshi) school. It comes in a wooden box lined with purple cloth, uninscribed.

Strong points

  • NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper seen in the photographs
  • Hammered iron with a stable black patina
  • Scattered openwork of mushrooms, flowers and sprouts
  • Early iron tsuba of the Ko-Kacchūshi school

Points to bear in mind

  • Unsigned: a school attribution, not an individual maker
  • The period is inferred from the attribution and style; the paper does not date it
  • Slight brownish tones in the central opening and some piercings

Score breakdown

57/100

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.

  1. Maker 9 of 25 Attributed to a school only
  2. Workmanship 10 of 20 Good work
  3. Condition 14 of 18 Good condition
  4. Period 12 of 12 Muromachi or earlier (before 1573)
  5. Paper 4 of 10 NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
  6. Extras 0 of 5 No complete set by the same maker and no inscribed box
  7. Price 8 of 10 Rank 46 of 228 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest