Sword Furnishings

It's been a long time in preparation, but finally I have another installment of images, this time of koshirae, from the Japanese Arms and Armour exhibition I attended some months ago. This chapter is longer, with more images, which are (of course) again available if anyone wants a copy--not that anyone asked last time.

Koshirae (the sword mountings with fittings that form a principal artistic part of the Japanese sword) are an art in and of themselves. They form an important part of the making of the sword, and often reflect particular virtues and interests or other symbolic meaning. To keep this entry short, I'll not delve into the thematic content of each piece or the history of koshirae in general. If you want more information on Japanese sword furniture, see Koshirae: Nihon Token Gaiso - The Mountings of Japanese Swords by C. U. Guido Schiller.

The following notes have been borrowed directly from the display text that accompanied the exhibition (except where text is in yellow). All credit for the technical notes goes to the Benalla Art Gallery and the Australian Society for the Preservation of Japanese Art Swords.

1. Tsuba (sword hand guard)

PERIOD: late Edo period (19th century)
MEI: Suruga Takaoki Inshû jû (d1856)
SUBJECT: Goose in long grass
MATERIAL: Iron

Takaoki (his personal name is Hayata Chujirô) was the son of Suruga Takashige and was ninth hereditary master of the Suruga of Inaba.


PERIOD: late Edo period (19th century)
MEI: unsigned - attributed to Ichijôsai Hirotoshi
SUBJECT: Battle of Mount Ishibashi
MATERIAL: shakudo, subject in raised iroe takazogan in shibuichi

This tsuba is unsigned but a similar signed work bearing the name of this artist is in the collection of the Museum of Decorative Arts, Copenhagen. The identification has been endorsed by the Japan Art Sword Preservation Museum.


PERIOD: Mid Edo period (ca 1700)
MEI: Signed on reverse Naoyuki (of the Hamano school)
SUBJECT: Kanzan and Jittoku with Tiger
MATERIAL: Iron

‘Kanzan and Jittoku’, a temple cleaner and poet-monk, are a popular Zen subject of Chinese origin.

2. Kozuka (a small knife with a decorative metal handle inserted in a slot in the scabbard of a sword)


PERIOD: mid Edo period (ca 1700)
MEI: Hamano Naoyuki
SUBJECT: tiger
MATERIAL: shibuichi

I am particularly taken by this kozuka. The intensity of the tiger's face is striking; in particular, the tiger's eyes are filled with a human intelligence that I find intriguing.


PERIOD: mid Edo period (ca 1740)
MEI: Tsu Jimpo
SUBJECT: A samurai mounted on a tiger chasing an ogre
MATERIAL: shakudo nanako with coloured metal overlay

Tsu Jimpo (1720-1761) belonged to the Awa branch of the Gotô school. He was a student of Naomura Masamichi and of Gotô Tsujô, the 9th master of the main Gotô line. This piece shows the official courtly Gotô style.

3. Set of Tsuba, Fuchi and Kashira

PERIOD: late Edo period (19th century)
MEI: Ishiguro Ichiju with kao
SUBJECT: crests
MATERIAL: shakudo nanako with iroe takazogan

The Ishiguro School was founded by Ishiguro Masatsune I (1760-1828). Ichiju was either a son or a pupil of Masatsune’s son Koretsune. While the Ishiguro School is characterised by its use of vibrant colours, the understated design of this set expresses the formal and subtle taste of the higher-ranking samurai.

4. Kogai (a small skewer-like utility implement inserted in the scabbard)

PERIOD: Late Momoyama/early Edo period (ca 1600)
MEI: unsigned – attributed to Ko Gotô
SUBJECT: Dragon entwined around Buddhist sword
MATERIAL: shakudo

5. Menuki (pair of carved metal ornaments under hilt binding)

PERIOD: Edo period (ca 1780)
MEI: unsigned – attributed to Mito Kuni
SUBJECT: Temple guardians (Nio)
MATERIAL: shibuichi



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That's all for now. I'm very pleased with the photos. I hope you're enjoying them as well, and the small amount of technical information I have on them. Keep an eye out for the final part of this exhibition, focussed on the blades and their mountings.