波濤に岩上鷹図大小 Sword Guard (Tsuba)

Inscribed by 石黒政常 Ishiguro Masatsune Japanese

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 380

This is the smaller guard of a matching pair of sword guards (daishō-tsuba) made by Ishiguro Masatsune (石黒政常, 1760–1828) (pair with 43.120.723). It features a hawk perched on a rock above the sea. The depiction of birds and flowers was the forte of the Ishiguro School, which was established by Masatsune toward the end of the eighteenth century. The solemn character of their interpretations, seen here in the magnificent birds of prey, made Ishiguro works popular among Samurai and elevated the school to one of the most thriving centers of sword-fitting production in Edo (present-day Tokyo).

波濤に岩上鷹図大小 Sword Guard (<i>Tsuba</i>), Inscribed by 石黒政常 Ishiguro Masatsune (Japanese, 1760–1828), Copper-gold alloy (<i>shakudō</i>), copper-silver alloy (<i>shibuichi</i>), gold, copper, Japanese

This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.

Obverse

波濤に岩上鷹図大小 Sword Guard (<i>Tsuba</i>), Inscribed by 石黒政常 Ishiguro Masatsune (Japanese, 1760–1828), Copper-gold alloy (<i>shakudō</i>), copper-silver alloy (<i>shibuichi</i>), gold, copper, Japanese
波濤に岩上鷹図大小 Sword Guard (<i>Tsuba</i>), Inscribed by 石黒政常 Ishiguro Masatsune (Japanese, 1760–1828), Copper-gold alloy (<i>shakudō</i>), copper-silver alloy (<i>shibuichi</i>), gold, copper, Japanese

This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.