| Hirado Kunishige [平戸国重]was a tsuba maker from Hirado, Hizen Province, in the mid-Edo period (around the Kyoho era). There are said to have been two generations of this lineage, but it is difficult to determine which generation they are. Kunishige meticulously crafts exotic designs of dragons, clouds, waves, arabesques, and other designs with a Nanban-style feel made of brass or shakudo. This tsuba is rare in its copper made. Clouds are depicted on the rim and seppudai, and the hira-ji ground area was plowed down to create a Seigaiha waves pattern. Accents scattered on the Seigaiha pattern as probably splashes of water, with and without gold-colored gilding. The side of the rim is meticulously engraved with a raimon/thunder crest pattern. It passed the Tokubetsu Hozon Tosogu shinsa in 2023. It comes in a special double-layered box containing two separate boxes. |
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