Sword Guard (Tsuba) With the Motif of Autumnal Vegetation (秋草透鐔)

Fittings maker Mitsunobu Japanese

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 199


Moore amassed a study collection of nearly 150 Japanese sword fittings along with complete mounts and blades for Tiffany’s designers to consult. A selection of the sword guards (tsuba) and utility knife handles (kozuka) is presented here. Regarded as autonomous works of art, the component parts of Japanese sword mounts were often signed by makers. Embellished with a wide range of decorative techniques, they typically feature representations of the natural world as well as depictions of social customs, scenes from popular stories, and religious symbols. They served as sources of inspiration for many of Tiffany’s Japanesque mixed-metal wares, as seen throughout this gallery.

The tsuba, a disk-shaped plate that prevented the hand from slipping onto the sword blade, offered many possibilities for creative ornamentation. This eighteenth-century example is decorated as a dense field of overlapping plants highlighted with gold. It reimagines a style of fitting that was popular in an earlier era, the late Muromachi period, and is historically associated with Mino province (present-day Gifu prefecture). Its construction is more delicate than the fittings that inspired it, reflecting the peaceful period during which the revival work was made.

Sword Guard (<i>Tsuba</i>) With the Motif of Autumnal Vegetation (秋草透鐔), Mitsunobu (Japanese, Mino province, active 17th century), Iron, gold, copper, silver-copper alloy (<i>shibuichi</i>), Japanese

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Sword Guard (<i>Tsuba</i>) With the Motif of Autumnal Vegetation (秋草透鐔), Mitsunobu (Japanese, Mino province, active 17th century), Iron, gold, copper, silver-copper alloy (<i>shibuichi</i>), Japanese
Sword Guard (<i>Tsuba</i>) With the Motif of Autumnal Vegetation (秋草透鐔), Mitsunobu (Japanese, Mino province, active 17th century), Iron, gold, copper, silver-copper alloy (<i>shibuichi</i>), Japanese
Sword Guard (<i>Tsuba</i>) With the Motif of Autumnal Vegetation (秋草透鐔), Mitsunobu (Japanese, Mino province, active 17th century), Iron, gold, copper, silver-copper alloy (<i>shibuichi</i>), Japanese
Sword Guard (<i>Tsuba</i>) With the Motif of Autumnal Vegetation (秋草透鐔), Mitsunobu (Japanese, Mino province, active 17th century), Iron, gold, copper, silver-copper alloy (<i>shibuichi</i>), Japanese

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