Photographs
Photographs by the seller at origin.
The piece
Shakudō kozuka with a nanako ground and a gold takabori dragon emerging from the sand, signed Gotō Renjō (後藤廉乗) with kaō (花押), tenth master of the main Gotō line.
Kozuka signed Gotō Renjō (後藤廉乗) with kaō (花押). According to the original seller, Renjō was the tenth master of the main Gotō line, son of Sokujō; he headed the house from 1652 and in 1662 moved his activity from Kyoto to Edo. The subject, suna-moguri ryū-zu (砂潜龍図), is the dragon diving into the sand: the photographs show the shakudō front plate with a nanako ground, from which the head with its claws, the scaled body and the tip of the tail emerge in three sections of gold takabori, as if the rest lay beneath the ground. It is a traditional Gotō theme, carved here with tense claws, sharp fins and a stern expression. The reverse is a gold plate with fine oblique striations, on which the engraved signature and kaō can be made out. The photographs show no noticeable wear on the relief nor loss of gold, and the nanako appears even. It measures 96.4 × 13.9 mm according to the original seller and comes in a fitted paulownia box with no visible inscription. The original seller declares an NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu paper, which does not appear in the photographs.
Strong points
- Signed by Gotō Renjō, tenth master of the main Gotō line, with his kaō
- Dragon emerging from the nanako in three sections of gold takabori
- Shakudō front plate with even nanako and a gold reverse plate
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper declared by the original seller
- Fitted paulownia box
Points to bear in mind
- The paper does not appear in the photographs; it rests on the original seller's declaration.
- The signature on the reverse is barely discernible at the resolution of the photographs.
- The original seller places it in the mid-Edo period; the master's career falls mainly in the second half of the 17th century.
Score
69.9 / 100
- Maker 25 of 25 Genuine signature of a first-rank master, confirmed by the paper
- Workmanship 15 of 20 Notable work
- Condition 14 of 18 Good condition
- Period 9 of 12 Early Edo (1615–1688)
- Paper 4 of 10 NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Extras 0 of 5 No complete set by the same maker and no inscribed box
- Price 2.9 of 10 Rank 78 of 110 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
- Kozuka
- Maker
- Gotō Renjō
- Period
- Early Edo (1615–1688)
- Material
- Shakudō, Gold
- Paper
- NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Tōsōgu
- Signature
- Signed
- School
- Gotō
- Inscription
- 後藤廉乗 花押 (Gotō Renjō kaō)
- Technique
- Nanako (fish-roe ground), Takabori (high relief), Iroe (coloured inlay)
- Dating
- Early Edo period (second half of the 17th century)