NihontoWatchNihontoWatchH558. You have to love this dragon. 7.4 x 7.7 x .5 cm. The nakago hitsu-ana is .9 x 2.7 cm. Skip Holbrook’s notes on this tsuba begin with Shoami Shonai? and end up at Myochin. The paper from the NTHK, dated 1993, gives it to Unshu (Idzumo) Haruta Saku. The Haruta School made armor as well as tsuba and probably had some connection with the Myochin School – also fittings and armor. Whatever the case, this is one sweet tsuba. Fine, crisp carving; the closer you look the more you’ll see. Excellent condition.
NihontoWatchOffered by Japanese Sword Books and Tsuba
Izumo
1 piece on the market now
The NTHK’s principal certificate, issued for a fitting of considerable quality. It confirms a genuine signature, or, for an unsigned (mumei) work, records the judges’ attribution to a smith or school. The paper carries a detailed worksheet with a numerical point score.
The NTHK (Nihon Tōken Hozon Kai, the Society for the Preservation of the Japanese Sword) is the oldest of Japan’s sword-appraisal bodies, founded in 1910, decades before the NBTHK. After the death of its long-serving head it divided into two successor societies, the NTHK and the NTHK-NPO, both of which continue to hold shinsa. NTHK certificates are known for a detailed worksheet that records a numerical point score alongside the judges’ written opinion, and the society is especially respected for its attribution of unsigned (mumei) work.
3-day return window from receipt.