Sword Guard (Tsuba)

Kanō Natsuo|紫原壽良画 Murasakibara Toshiyoshi

mid-19th century · Copper-silver alloy (shibuichi), copper-gold alloy (shakudō), gold, silver, copper · Arms and Armor

Kanō Natsuo, the last great maker of sword fittings, decorated the front; his co-worker Toshiyoshi decorated the reverse. The commissioner of the tsuba is identified as Shirase. It features a design of a kingfisher on a branch.

Artist

Kanō Natsuo|紫原壽良画 Murasakibara Toshiyoshi

Date

mid-19th century

Medium

Copper-silver alloy (shibuichi), copper-gold alloy (shakudō), gold, silver, copper

Culture

Japanese

Department

Arms and Armor

Credit line

The Howard Mansfield Collection, Gift of Howard Mansfield, 1936