Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
Shakudō tsuba with a nanako ground and New Year decorations in takabori with gold and silver iroe, signed Tobari Yoshihiro with kaō. Late Edo period.
Upright-round (tate-maru-gata) tsuba signed on the seppa-dai 戸張良弘 (Tobari Yoshihiro), followed by his kaō (花押). According to the original seller, Yoshihiro was a pupil of Tobari Tomihisa, himself trained in the Gotō tradition, and worked in Edo, Musashi province. The subject is a New Year decoration (shōgatsu-kazari): a twisted sacred shimenawa rope runs along the rim on both faces, with yuzuriha and urajiro fern leaves in high relief with gold and silver iroe, and gohei ritual paper strips. The ground is shakudō with a very even nanako laid in concentric rows; the original seller states that the rope is shibuichi (oborogin). The photographs show crisp nanako and complete inlays; there are mounting scratches on the seppa-dai and the silver of one leaf has darkened. Declared dimensions: 69 × 64.7 mm, 3.8 mm thick at the seppa-dai. The original seller declares an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper and a fitted paulownia box; the paper does not appear in the photographs.
Strong points
- Signed Tobari Yoshihiro with kaō, clearly legible
- Very even shakudō nanako in the Gotō tradition
- New Year theme in takabori with gold and silver iroe continuing onto the reverse
- Tokubetsu Hozon paper declared by the original seller
Points to bear in mind
- The Tokubetsu Hozon paper does not appear in the photographs
- Mounting scratches on the seppa-dai and darkened silver on one leaf
- Small sekigane in the central opening
Score
59.4 / 100
- Maker 19 of 25 Genuine signature of a known maker or school
- Workmanship 10 of 20 Good work
- Condition 14 of 18 Good condition
- Period 5 of 12 Late Edo (1781–1868)
- Paper 4 of 10 NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Extras 0 of 5 No complete set by the same maker and no inscribed box
- Price 7.4 of 10 Rank 87 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
- Maker
- Yoshihiro
- Period
- Late Edo (1781–1868)
- Material
- Shakudō, Shibuichi, Gold, Silver
- Paper
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Signature
- Signed
- School
- Tobari
- Inscription
- 戸張良弘（花押） (Tobari Yoshihiro kaō)
- Technique
- Nanako (fish-roe ground), Takabori (high relief), Iroe (coloured inlay), Kebori (line engraving)
- Dating
- Late Edo period (19th century)