The four-lobed (mokko) nigurome metal plate is decorated on the rim with a deeply carved relief of flowers and crickets in gold, silver and shakudo. The design is repeated on the reverse. The web is nanako; the edge is large grain nanako with gold cover--height 6.6cm., width 6.0cm., thickness 3.0mm.
Provenance
Dr. Fahrenhorst
Lempertz, Cologne, 5 December 1968, lot 2813
Lot Essay
This style imitates the Mino Goto work of the Muromachi and Momoyama periods. It was made in the Nagoya area to satisfy a resurgence of that style in the mid-Edo period.
More from
Japanese Swords & Sword Fittings from col Dr Walter Ames