Some basic information about tsuba.

So what is a tsuba?

A tsuba is the sword guard of a japanese katana or tachi. Its primary purposes are to balance the sword, prevent your hand from sliding down the blade and, as a last resort, as a block against a thrust or slash. However, as time and skills progressed they evolved into items of art and the ever popular status symbol.

What is a tsuba made of?

Early tsuba, known as neri tsuba, were of leather in an iron or wooden frame which was sometimes lacquered for strength and stability. Later in the Muromachi period (1392-1572) when tsuba became an industry separate from sword manufacture, the iron tsuba evolved. Its primary purpose was still balance/defense; however, inscriptions of buddhist prayers or family mottos and artistic piercework developed. (Piercework itself was defensive as it lightened the weight of the guard, but did not significantly reduce its protective capabilities.)

Over the years, artists, (and they were artists) used many different metals. They manufactured tsuba from copper, yamagane ( a dark impure copper), brass, sentoku (a yellowy or dark brown brass), iron, shakudo (a mixture of copper, gold and whatever else was available which resulted in a purplish black patina) and shibuichi (literally meaning 4 parts, it is usually composed of silver -the constant here- and copper, tin, lead or zinc. A harder alloy than shakudo it has a silvery grey appearance when pickled.) Although the iron was an early development, it reemerged later as artists, such as Goto Ichijo, rebelled against the overly ornate and structured form which the tsuba gained.

So what does a tsuba look like?

The tsuba can take many forms. It can be circular, kobushi (fist shaped),mokko (4 lobed), aoi (an outline suggesting the leaves of the mallow) or just plain irregular.

Its surface can be covered with zogan (inlay) There is:

gomoku-zogan

"dirt inlay" in which brass wired is applied "at random"

hira zogan

inlay which is polished flush with the tsuba's surface

honzogan

a true inlay which is finished either flat (hirazogan) or raised (takazogan)

nunome-zogan

here, the surface of an iron tsuba is covered or hatched with intersecting cuts. A wire or foil inlay is then tapped and burnished into place.

shippo zogan

colored vitreous enamels are melted into the recesses cut for them in the surface of the tsuba.

sumi zogan

"ink inlay" the tsuba ground is chiselled with slanting sides, and in the course of grinding and polishing the inlay becomes so united with the ground that it looks like an ink painting beneath the surface of the tsuba.

taka zogan

an inlay which is proud of the surface and is carved.

The surface can be carved: It could be/have

guri bori

a welding of layers of copper and shakudo which is then carved to give the impression of a carved laquer.

katakiribori

chiseling which imitates a paint brush's stroke, uneven in depth and width.

kebori

hair chiseling. chiseling which is uniform in its stroke.

shishiaibori

a relief carving below the level of the main ground of the piece.

sukashibori

a sort of sculpturing in the round, generally applied to iron tsuba where the design is a positive silhouette.

sukidashibori

here, the metal of the ground is cut away leaving the design in high relief.

takabori iroe

the design is modeled in high relief in a metal different from the tsuba's main body and is decorated with the inlay of other metals.

mokume

where iron and other alloys are welded, pounded,twisted, carved, etc, until the surface resembles the "grain of wood."

The artist could also use the technique of iroe (using metals such as gold, silver, shakudo, etc. to paint or color a design upon his piece). With a small hollow punch, he could create nanako (fish roe) impressions on its surface.

What sort of designs might it have?

As time went on, the sky was the limit. Simple inscriptions and pierce work, such as peonies, were replaced by scenes from Japanese mythology/history. The tsuba could be fashioned of coiled dragons or it could be a simple shakudo background for a carved swirl. Different families/schools, such as the Goto, Nara, Hamano, Myochin and Yanagawa, evolved and created their own "house styles" which influenced and were influenced by the world/culture around them. Periodically military requirements made the tsuba return to its more humble beginnings. However as artistic skills developed and peace, more or less, arrived, the tsuba became less of an item of defense than a portable work of art to be shown off, given as a gift (let's impress the local boss/emperor/daimyo) and be passed down as a family heirloom.

Basically the tsuba is a compact example of history and art which I, for one,enjoy.

For more information compiled by me

Examples (Photographs and quick descriptions)
A short bibliography
Other tsuba/japanese sword sites

NOTE:

I am NOT an authority on this subject. I've just started to learn a little bit about tsuba and thought I would share it. I apologize for any misspellings or misunderstandings on my part. If you want to know more about tsuba, there are several good web sites (see above.) But perhaps the best resource is your library. It may be "old school", but there are a number of good books and journals. Visit your local library and get used to filling out Interlibrary loan cards. (I've included a brief bibliography for anyone's edification) And if you know of any great tsuba reference materials which could augment/correct my knowledge, let me know.

This page was last updated on 8/4/07.

Feel free to send comments or questions.

Kim Allen