Description

This is a large and ornate tsuba featuring a flower petal openwork design on a suaka (unalloyed copper) ground with amida-yasuri (radiating file marks). It is attributed to the Kyo-Kanagushi school, a group of Kyoto metalworkers distinct from the old kinko, tachishi, Shoami, and Goto families. The piece includes gold iroe (color painting) and has been carefully filed even on the inside of the hitsu-ana and openwork.