Kantei

NH-0991 Rank 181

Tsuba · Yukimitsu

幸光 (Yukimitsu)

Brass tsuba with ishime ground signed Yukimitsu, showing So Tōba and a boy in takabori with shakudō, gold and copper iroe, with Tokubetsu Hozon papers.

TsubaLate Edo (1781–1868)Late Edo period (19th century)NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu

Photographs by the seller at origin.

Description

Nadekaku-gata (rounded-square) tsuba signed 幸光 (Yukimitsu), an artisan the original seller places in Nagato province. The front depicts the Chinese poet 蘇東坡 (So Tōba), Su Dongpo, wearing his wide-brimmed hat and holding an open scroll, approached by a pointing boy, beneath sprays of bamboo. The reverse continues with a low-relief bamboo trunk and further leaves. The ground is brass (shinchū) with an ishime texture and a sukinokoshi-mimi rim; the figures are carved in takabori with shakudō, gold and copper iroe, and the poet's robes carry fine line work. There is a single oval hitsu-ana for a kozuka. The photographs show a warm patina with no sign of repatination, well-preserved relief and gilding, and a central opening with irregular edges that has been adjusted at some point. It comes with an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon certificate, visible in the photographs, and a wooden box. Dimensions according to the original seller: 7.2 × 6.8 cm, 164 g.

Strong points

  • NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon papers
  • Signed 幸光 (Yukimitsu)
  • Chinese literary subject: So Tōba with a boy attendant
  • Shakudō, gold and copper iroe on ishime brass

Points to bear in mind

  • The central opening shows irregular edges and a notch, a sign of adjustment
  • The photographs are small; signature and papers cannot be read in detail
  • The period is inferred from style; the piece is not dated

Score breakdown

57.4/100

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 19 of 25 Genuine signature of a known maker or school
  2. Workmanship 10 of 20 Good work
  3. Condition 14 of 18 Good condition
  4. Period 5 of 12 Late Edo (1781–1868)
  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 5.4 of 10 Rank 105 of 228 by price among pieces of its type, from the most affordable to the dearest