NihontoWatchNihontoWatchExplanation: This outstanding rare elegant one of a kind Tsuba of a Koi is by an artist in the Kano Natsuo school. Kano Natsuo was the last famous Master of Sword Fittings in Japan He had few students and only the chosen ones were allowed make Sword fittings. Katsunao who made this Tsuba is in Meikan and along with Katsumori had distinguished profiles and also created great works. This Tsuba is a fantastic and also a rare item of Japanese art and is executed perfectly in balance , proportion and design and depicts a Koi swimming. When compared to Natsuo’s work it is extremely similar in design and quality . This Tsuba would be in the centre of any upper class collection. Natsuo's Tsuba designs were simple however although the motif was simple and the utmost thought and care has been put into the design and through this commitment the works are masterpieces. His students who learned the art from him were few and some of the noteworthy were : Nomura Katsumori and Katsunao, Kagawa Katsuhiro and Masuda Tomo.Their works are also outstanding and extremely rare as they are direct students from the Natsuo school. It is also recorded that before Natsuo’s death in the 1890s an America collector had paid twenty-five hundred dollars for a Tsuba that Natsuo had made.This is the equivalent of USD$84,729.95 today. Mei (signature) KATSUNAO Jidai (era) Late Edo Period Mimi (rim) : 4mm Certification : NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon Certificate (Extraordinarily Worthy of Preservation)
NihontoWatchOffered by Connoisseur Arms
A Hozon-certified fitting of notably superior craftsmanship and condition, often with signature or workmanship of high reference value.
The NBTHK (Nihon Bijutsu Tōken Hozon Kyōkai, the Society for the Preservation of Japanese Art Swords) is a public-interest incorporated foundation founded in 1948 and supervised by Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs (Bunkachō); it is based at the Japanese Sword Museum in Tokyo. Its expert panels physically examine each submitted work (shinsa) and issue a certificate (kanteishō) ranking it by artistic and historical merit. NBTHK papers are the most widely recognized standard of authentication for Japanese swords and fittings.
NBTHK official sitePurchases are final and items cannot be returned unless otherwise stated.
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