Iron Tanaka Toryusai tsuba made by Toshikage with NBTHK Hozon Tosogu. He was a student of Tanaka Kiyotoshi working in late Edo and Meiji period. Tsuba is signed "Genji Kanoene ....." with Kao. Genji is short era in Japanese history that lasted from 1864 to 1865. Kanoene is a year of the Iron Rat in zodiac calendar. It is a bit strange as 1865 was a year of a Wood Rat. After Genji Kanoene there are some Kanji but unfortunately they are unreadable. On the left side of seppa dai there is a Toshikage Kao.
Tsuba is decorated with Three Friends of Winter theme, consisting of plum, pine and bamboo. Those three plants do not wither in the winter so they symbolise steadfastness, perseverance, and resilience.
Base of the tsuba is in a very rough condition. Most probably it was cleaned using modern rust removal techniques and thus surface was damaged. Fortunately it looks slightly better then on my pictures, photo on the certificate shows this tsuba in a more realistic way.
Size: 65 mm x 57 mm x 3,5 mm
