Sometimes an item comes your way that stuns you.
A short while back such an item found its way into our shop. It was a Tsuba with a theme taken from the Japanese fable of ‘Tsuchi-gumo'(a spider demon), and the story about ‘Minamoto Raikō’ whose life the demon made miserable.
Not even Minamoto’s loyal retainers were able to dispose of the demon, and at the end it was ‘Hizamaru’, Minamoto’s own Tachi that came to life and got rid of the terrible Tsuchi-gumo demon.
The Tsuba itself depicts some of Raikō’s retainers, fast asleep, after the demon had cast a spell on them, on one side. On the other side, the Hizamaru is depicted.
When I first bought this Tsuba, I was fascinated by how well the previous owner told the story, as well as the craftsmanship of the Tsuba-maker. In combination, these two skills complimated each other very well, and are, at least to me, something that I think should be larger part of the artistic side of our business.
For any sword trader, to neglect this part of our history and our story telling traditions, seems to me a big waste, as this type of knowledge, adds to the value and uniquness of most Tsuba, and helps in keeping items and our culture interesting and living.
For a long time, I failed at making the fable interesting myself, as I was unable to tell the story as well as the person from whom I bought the Tsuba to begin with.
The Tsuba itself would be easy to sell, it having been sugested as a possible candidates for the ‘Jūyō-tōsōgu’ rank. But, this to me, didn’t seem fair to the Tsuba nor to the man who made it. However, I was finally able to find the item a good home, with a buyer and enthusiast that truly understood how unique the Tsuba this is.
In a way, it felt similar to seeing a son or daughter marry a good spouse and start a new and exciting chapter.