Nobuiye Tsuba
DM103
A very large thin tsuba signed, nijimei on the right side of the seppadai, Nobuiye. Tortoise shell pattern with iron vines in takabori and iron leaves in takazogan, gold veins and silver dew drops. Tekotsu in the edge, so not a factory plate. It is interesting that the suyari affect, appears to be from a roughly plate, rather than finished and polished, giving the tsuba a rustic sophistication. The size would argue for 1800, but the thinness of the plate, and the fact that it is not factory plate, argues for an early Edo piece. 9.21 cm x 8.69 cm x 4 mm. $750
Addendum: as per Robert Haynes, 'It certainly looks Shoami, and there was a Shoami artist working in the 1800's. I don't have a record of his signature, this could be him, but I will have to study it'.