Tsuba, An Aesthetic Study

This book is about tsuba (Japanese sword guards), from the Kofun Jidai (late 3rd to mid-7th centuries) to the Edo period (1615-1868). It is divided into four parts. Parts I and II cover the inception of tsuba and the main schools in chronological order. Parts III and IV cover specific schools and makers. Appendices include a glossary of tsuba-related Japanese terms as well as descriptions of forging, surface finishes, coloring of metals, fukurin (rim covers), inlay styles (zōgan) and the composition of metal alloys used in tsuba. Kazutaro Torigoye’s 鐔 芸 術 考 (Tsuba Geijutsu-kō, A Treatise on the Aesthetics of Tsuba) was written in 1960. Robert Haynes’ TSUBA, An Aesthetic Study, largely based on Tsuba Geijutsu-kō, was edited and published by Alan Harvie for the Northern California Japanese Sword Club in 1994-1997. The publication of a bound volume in 2000 was followed by a second printing in 2007. Since then, the work has been published in spiral bound book form by the Northern California Japanese Sword Club (NCJSC). In 2022, this digitally remastered 2nd edition was produced by the NCJSC to correct some minor errors and improve the quality of the text and images. This edition has 119 figures in black and white in 237 pages with softcover binding. From Robert Haynes’ dedication: Though Tsuba Geijutsu Kō, 鐔芸術考 (A Treatise on the Aesthetics of Tsuba) is the core of this work, this is not a direct translation of that book. It was felt that additional information was needed, both basic information and amplification of old and new ideas, to assist the Western student, whether neophyte or authority. To this end additions were made where it was realized the original text was too terse or took basic information for granted.