Brass Tachi Kanagushi Tsuba

This is a very early brass tachi kanagushi tsuba - a rare piece.  It is very likely that this brass is imported.  It is darker, richer and more visually elegant than brass produced in Japan by the late Momoyama period.  This is the type of brass used in contemporary Onin tsuba.   Note that the sukashi is chiselled, not cut-out with a saw.  The plate has been covered by black lacquer which remains in many areas.  The hitsu-ana is likely original and of an early form - low and elongated.

Mid Muromachi  Period (late 15th c.)

6.1 x 5.9 x 0.25