Sword guard (Tsuba) With Chinese Bellflowers Motif (桔梗図鐔)
Not on view
This tsuba is made of high-quality iron displaying a rich, deep brown patina. The motif of Chinese bellflowers (Japanese: kikyo) in sukidashi-takabori relief takes up the entire plate and the raised rim is decorated on all sides with a disconnected traditional Japanese "hemp leaf" (asanoha) pattern in gold and copper.
The artist Masatsune (正常), real name Yamagata Tsunematsu (山縣常松), was a tsuba-maker from the Edo-based Bushū Itō (武州伊藤) School. He had studied with the sixth Itō master Masatane (正種) and was later allowed to use the Itō name himself, changing his name so to Itō Jingorō (伊藤甚五郎). Masatsune also held several posts with the Shogunate, e.g. that of a firearms official, and became an outstanding master of his school.
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