Ko-Kinkō Tsuba
Exceptional ko-kinkō tsuba (古金工鐔) with single small hole or ko-sukashi (小透). This style of tsuba is known in the same format, but in iron, sometimes with a yamagane fukurin. However, this is the first one I have encountered completely in soft metal. The tsuba is completely unaltered or ubu, with the ko-sukashi motif being original to the time of manufacture. It is in effect, the soft metal version of a ko-tosho or ko-katchushi iron tsuba.
The tsuba is made of yamagane, with fine hammering or tsuchime-ji (山銅槌目地), and has been black lacquered. 5 small whirlpool designs or uzumaki-mon (渦巻文) are punched in a technique called tenneko-bori or tensen-bori (点猫彫 / 点線彫). This technique is essentially a series of tiny linear dots used to create a pattern. It is a very old technique, rarely seen. The fukurin is of dote-mimi style (覆輪土手耳), again, mimicking the style of rim used on early iron tsuba. It is made of yamagane, and decorated with scrolled vine motifs or karakusa no zu (唐草図). The patina of this tsuba is fantastic. The colors are rich, varied, and demonstrate the beauty and complexity of unrefined copper or yamagane as a material. In addition, there appear to be areas remaining on the plate with remnant gold application, suggesting the plate was at one time gilded. The remnant gold contributes to the color variation of the plate.
This tsuba is distinctive, in that it contains a faint personal inscription, scrawled by hand (not with a chisel or tagane) in the area between the ko-sukashi and nakago-ana. The inscription seems original, as it predates the lacquer, though the translation is challenging. It seems to say "[?]mi no saku" (?みノサく). Considering that artisans didn't start signing tosogu with any frequency until Azuchi-Momoyama period, this would be among the earliest examples of tsubako attribution.
This ko-sukashi motif is also encountered in an iron format as ko-tosho tsuba. Interestingly, it is observed that the iron format is more frequently encountered around the Seto Inland Sea. It is thought the rudimentary iron versions of this tsuba may have been utilized on certain forms of utilitarian odachi and polearms, with the ko-sukashi being used to feed a cord connecting the tsuka and saya, to keep them closed. There has been speculation that the use of these tsuba was related to long blades used in naval combat.
While seemingly related to the early iron ko-sukashi examples, this soft metal tsuba is much more elaborate. Likely it was used on a tachi or uchigatana koshirae, following the fashion / tradition of the region of manufacture. The back of the tsuba is adorned with 5 punched whirlpool patterns. Contextualized to the region, the pattern may be a representation of the eddies / whirlpools frequently seen in the Naruto strait (鳴門の渦潮, Naruto no Uzushio).
Overall, this tsuba is an extremely well-preserved, rare and valuable early soft-metal work. It retains a very early signature, and may linked to the region around the Seto Inland Sea, providing an unusual and highly desirable curltural context, rarely afforded by early tosogu. It would be a centerpiece of any collection.
Translation of the NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon paper description follows:
渦巻文 唐草図鐔 (uzumakimon karakusa no zu tsuba)
無銘 古金工 (Mumei Ko-kinkō)
丸形 山銅槌目地 点猫彫 (Maru-gata yamagane tsuchime-ji tenneko-bori)
小透 覆輪土手耳 (Ko-sukashi fukurin-dote-mimi)
Reiwa 3rd year (2022) July 14th
Measurements: 8.4cm x 8.4cm x 0.55cm fukurin
Muromachi Period (室町中期時代), ~1450-1500
$3,600
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