Hoan style Chrysanthemum Tsuba

Forged from iron and shaped in ‘Hachi Mokko Gata’ form using the ‘sukashi’ (openwork) technique, the negative space is as integral to the design as the solid form depicts a Chrysanthemum or ‘kiku‘ an important symbol in Japan’s tradition. The ‘kiku‘ is often seen on clan ‘mon’, even in the imperial ‘mon’ due to its iconographic meaning of nobility. The pierced design of the tsuba has a classic design featuring a ‘Nakago  Ana‘, ‘Kozuka hitsu Ana‘ and ‘Kogai Hitsu Ana‘ which are fluently interacting with the outlines which surrounds the eight apertures.

While the Hoan school tsuba are originally made in the Owari province within the Muromachi period, roughly between 1500 and 1600 A.D. This tsuba seems to be made during the Edo Period, likely in the 17th or 18th century. However, the tsuba follows a strict Hoan school design with its etched surface.