Artwork Page for Sword Guard (Tsuba) with Dragon and Sacred Jewel

Details / Information for Sword Guard (Tsuba) with Dragon and Sacred Jewel

Sword Guard (Tsuba) with Dragon and Sacred Jewel

c. 1615–1868

Japan, possibly Edo period

(1615-1868)
Medium
iron
Measurements
Diameter: 7.7 cm (3 1/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of D. Z. Norton 1919.519
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print
A sword guard, a thick rounded disc, is fashioned from dark brown, pitted iron. A dragon in raised carving coils around the perimeter, accented with muted gold highlights as it pursues a small orb. Three openings pierce the metal: a large wedge-shaped hole flanked by an oval and an irregular cutout. Organic, winding patterns from the dragon's body frame these central voids, creating a sense of movement across the surface.

Sword Guard (Tsuba) with Dragon and Sacred Jewel

c. 1615–1868

Japan, possibly Edo period (1615-1868)

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