Page 40 - Japanese Art Nov 9 2017 London

75 During the incessant wars of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries,
AN IRON TSUBA the impermanence of human life—already a leitmotif of elite Japanese
By Nobuie, Muromachi (1333-1573) or Momoyama (1573-1615) culture—took on still greater significance, above all through the
period, 16th/early 17th century influence of Zen Buddhism. Tsuba were affected by this shift of
Of circular form with raised rim, the hammered ground engraved with emphasis, as seen especially in the work of Nobuie, which reflects
flowers and foliage on either side, the ryohitsu-ana ringed with gold, the prevailing samurai taste for wabi, sabi and the same deliberate
signed Nobuie; with a hardwood storage box and silk cover. artlessness that we also admire in the tea bowls and other artefacts of
7.6cm (3in). (4). the late Muromachi and Momoyama periods. The artists who used the
Nobuie name signed their tsuba in several distinct styles, the absence
£15,000 - 18,000 of transitional signatures suggesting that there were two distinct
JPY2,200,000 - 2,700,000 groups who can be thought of as belonging to a first and a second
US$20,000 - 24,000 generation.

Accompanied by a NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon certificate issued on
30 October 2009 stating that the work is an authentic work by
Nobuie and worthy of preservation.

The plate is of fine colour with granular tekkotsu to the rim, made in the
style of Ko-Katchushi tsuba of the Muromachi period.

38 | BONHAMS For details of the charges payable in addition to the final Hammer Price of each Lot
please refer to paragraphs 7 & 8 of the Notice to Bidders at the back of the catalogue.