"Iron cup shape tsuba with carved and repose design of a
dragon in clouds. The kogai hitsu has been filled with
shakudo. The reverse is well hammered and shows the
repose work to be seen on the face. This tsuba was in
several European collections, such as Garbutt, Joly,
Harding, Wrangham, and others. It went to Europe about
1890. It is signed on the left side of the back seppa
area: Shoami Nobutada, though the Sho
kanji has been removed and the other two kanji of the family
name have been altered to look like the family name MYOCHIN.
The reason this was done, ca. 1700 - 1750 was to enhance the
genealogy of the Myochin family tree. All the early
names attributed by the Myochin as artists from their
family, are for the most part a pure fabrication. They
wanted to be the most famous artist family of the Edo period
and thus added many names who were not in truth of their
family so they could gain that fame. On the right side
of the back seppa area is the date: Eisho gen nen
(1504), also probably added when the family name was
changed. Joly misread the family name and catalogued
this piece in the Red Cross book as Myochin Nobutada,
with date. See number 41, plate CIII, in 1916.
We have all heard of the fabrications of the Myochin, but
this is the first real proof of their duplicity. A
very important tsuba for the history and study of the
Myochin family."
As a follow-up to
Mr. Haynes comments, note the area of hammering around the
signature and how carefully the strokes of the original
Shoami signature were matched. This was a
professionally falsified signature, where individual strokes
were altered or removed and then new ones methodically
added. Also curious is how little the falsifiers knew
of stylistic changes in tsuba from the Eisho to the mid Edo.
To use a cup-shaped tsuba and apply a date of Eisho is
absurd.
Red
Cross catalogue description: 41. T, iron,
convex, thick metal, repousse from inside to get the higher
reliefs and chased in bold relief with a dragon and cloud
vortices, signed (Miochin) Nobutada, dated
Eisho, 1st year (1504). Matt. Garbutt, Esq.
Early to Mid Edo
period (18th c.)
8.7 cm x 8.6 cm x 1.6 cm deep. 0.3 - 0.6 cm thick.
Other tsuba from the Robert
E. Haynes collection
$2000
