The A. H. Church Collection of Japanese Sword-Guards (Tsuba)
An unpublished catalogue of the A. H. Church collection of Japanese sword-guards (tsuba) by Albert James Koop.
Publications online: 1264 objects
Tsuba with ants, paulownia, and chrysanthemum
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Literature notes
Rounded oblong; low relief with rich nunome of tinted gold and silver; on a ground of simple matting design, silvered, crawl five (at the back, two) ants, in iroye incrustation; the matting is broken in several places, revealing, on the front, paulownia leaves and inflorescences, and, at the back, a chrysanthemum and leaves (partly in shibuichi); on each face is a fixed dai-seppa (extra large washer), of yukiwa (lobed "snow-heap") outline, in shakudō with nunome gold powdering; the iron bordering the tang-hole stands up flush with these; slightly raised narrow border with irregular inner profile, nunome-gilt.
Hawkshaw Collection, no. 3164. -
Details
- Associated place
- Date
- 19th century (1801 - 1900)
- Material and technique
- obverse and reverse: iron, partly silvered, with gold and silver nunome-zōgan decoration, iro-e zōgan (multi-metal inlay) decoration, and shakudō; tang-hole plugged with soft metal, probably copper reverse: with shibuichi
- Dimensions
- 7.5 x 6.8 cm (height x width)
- Material index
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processed material › metal › iron,processed material › metal › gold,processed material › metal › alloy › copper alloy › shakudō,processed material › metal › alloy › silver alloy › shibuichi,processed material › metal › alloy › copper alloy › shibuichi,
- Technique index
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covered › metallized › silvered,
- Object type index
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arms/armour › koshirae › kodogu › tsuba
- No. of items
- 1
- Credit line
- Bequeathed by Sir Arthur H. Church, 1915.
- Accession no.
- EAX.11088
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Further reading
Koop, Albert James, The A. H. Church Collection of Japanese Sword-Guards (Tsuba), 3 vols (Oxford, Ashmolean Museum, 1929), no. 1088
Glossary (4)
nunome-zōgan, shakudō, shibuichi, tsuba
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nunome-zōgan
Decorative application of metal sheeting (generally of gold or silver) where the iron ground is first cross-hatched and the metal burnished on.
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shakudō
alloy of copper and gold, patinated to a dark blue-black colour
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shibuichi
alloy of copper and silver, patinated to a dull grey-green colour
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tsuba
Japanese sword guard.
Location
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- currently in research collection
Objects are sometimes moved to a different location. Our object location data is usually updated on a monthly basis. Contact the Jameel Study Centre if you are planning to visit the museum to see a particular object on display, or would like to arrange an appointment to see an object in our reserve collections.
Publications online
-
The A. H. Church Collection of Japanese Sword-Guards (Tsuba)
Rounded oblong; low relief with rich nunome of tinted gold and silver; on a ground of simple matting design, silvered, crawl five (at the back, two) ants, in iroye incrustation; the matting is broken in several places, revealing, on the front, paulownia leaves and inflorescences, and, at the back, a chrysanthemum and leaves (partly in shibuichi); on each face is a fixed dai-seppa (extra large washer), of yukiwa (lobed "snow-heap") outline, in shakudō with nunome gold powdering; the iron bordering the tang-hole stands up flush with these; slightly raised narrow border with irregular inner profile, nunome-gilt.
Hawkshaw Collection, no. 3164.
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