by B.W. Robinson,  1980

11 1/2" x 9" x 2" hardcover brown cloth book with dust jacket

and

12" x 9 1/2" soft cover catalogue

448 pgs, 17 colour plates, 884 pieces and 746 signatures in b/w

Limited edition of 1500 numbered copies (this is #1157)

This now out-of-print tome is by far the thickest, most comprehensive compendium of a single collection ever assembled in English.  Alfred Baur (1865 - 1951) was a prolific collector of Japanese arts at the turn of the 20th century.    He was predominantly interested in top quality kinko works of all of the great schools, but also collected some superb iron examples of the Momoyama and Edo periods.   The main book is profusely illustrated in B/W, with some colour plates.  All major schools are discussed, and where possible, a family tree is provided.  There is a glossary of terms, and a 'dictionary' of 810 artist names with kanji indicating all that is known about the maker, including affiliations, working dates and other valuable bits of information.  A very valuable aspect of this book is the extensive photographic collection of signatures (746 in total).  It is a must-have for anyone with a broad interest in tosogu.

Also included in this offering is a separate large format soft-bound book of 28 pages  entitled Les Cahiers des Collections - Ornaments de Sabres.  It is printed with both English and French text.  It contains mainly colour plates, a biography of Alfred Baur and a glossary of terms. 

$295