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Sword Ware with Pond Motif and Boats
IMSA#: PMO-40
Estimated Date:
1900
Country of Origin:
Japan
Manufacturer:
Unknown (possibly Komai (either
O. or S. Komai)
Catalog No.:
Material:
Shakudo, an alloy of gold and copper, usually a
blue-black color & various inlays of shibuichi (silver & copper).
Markings:
Maker's mark in
Japanese on one edge.
Patent/Design No.:
Patent/Design Date:
Size (Inches):
2 1/2" x 1 1/2" x
1/2"
Reverse:
Different pond motif, see photo.
Description and
Comments: Pond
motif with striker on bottom. Some parts of this safe was made from sword
fittings, the KASHIRA (fitting at end of handle), nakago ana (the almost
triangular opening where the striker is on the vesta, sekigane (the oval shape
around the opening of the striker). The metal working technique used is:Zogan
(inlay). Inlay involves the embedding of relatively soft metals such as gold and
silver into a harder ground made of materials such
as copper, iron, brass, shakudo or shibuichi. There are a number of techniques,
including line inlay (sen-zogan), flat inlay hira-zogan), high relief inlay (takaniku-zogan),
polished out inlay (togidashi-zogan) and thread inlay (ito-zogan). Here is some
background info: The metalsmiths drew inspiration for their themes from folk
tales, historical events, religion, heraldry, nature, and the works of the
greatest Chinese and Japanese painters. Our appreciation of the difficulty of
the guard maker's (the portion of the sword that was turned into a vesta) task
increases as one considers the physical limitations of shape, size, and function
with which the tsuba (sword guard) challenged the creativity of the maker.
Submitted BY:
From the
collection of the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, Smithsonian
Institution. Gift of Carol B. and Stephen W. Brener.
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