Eastern Art Online, Yousef Jameel Centre for Islamic and Asian Art

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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An unpublished catalogue of the A. H. Church collection of Japanese sword-guards (tsuba) by Albert James Koop.

The A.H. Church Collection of Japanese Sword-Guards (Tsuba) by Albert James Koop

Publications online: 1264 objects

Tsuba depicting a property boat used in nō dramafront

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Tsuba depicting a property boat used in nō drama

  • Literature notes

    Rounded oblong; "wire" edge; the front modelled with one of the skeleton property boats used in certain nō dramas (large square sail with karahana diaper in gold nunome; angle-plates, halyards and tassels in silver); on the back, below, a few waves sunk below the field in engraved silver with gold spray-drops.

    Almost forms a pair with a larger guard in the Victoria and Albert Museum.

  • Details

    show all
    Associated place
    Asia › Japan (place of creation)
    Asia › Japan (Harima province) (place of creation)
    Date
    18th century (1701 - 1800)
    Artist/maker
    Umetada School (active 16th century - 19th century) (armourer)
    Material and technique
    obverse and reverse: iron obverse: inlaid with silver, and with gold nunome-zōgan decoration reverse: with silver and gold, engraved
    Dimensions
    7.4 x 6.9 x 0.5 cm (height x width x depth)
    Material index
    processed material › metal › iron,
    processed material › metal › gold,
    processed material › metal › silver
    Technique index
    forged,
    covered › inlaid,
    printed › intaglio print › engraving
    Object type index
    arms/armour › koshirae › kodogu › tsuba
    No. of items
    1
    Credit line
    Bequeathed by Sir Arthur H. Church, 1915.
    Accession no.
    EAX.10208

  • Further reading

    Koop, Albert James, The A. H. Church Collection of Japanese Sword-Guards (Tsuba), 3 vols (Oxford, Ashmolean Museum, 1929), no. 208

Glossary (2)

nunome-zōgan, tsuba

  • 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.

  • tsuba

    Japanese sword guard.

Location

    • 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) by Albert James Koop

    The A. H. Church Collection of Japanese Sword-Guards (Tsuba)

    Rounded oblong; "wire" edge; the front modelled with one of the skeleton property boats used in certain nō dramas (large square sail with karahana diaper in gold nunome; angle-plates, halyards and tassels in silver); on the back, below, a few waves sunk below the field in engraved silver with gold spray-drops.

    Almost forms a pair with a larger guard in the Victoria and Albert Museum.
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