"Round, iron-polished ground, openwork, hair carving, square-eared.
The Hayashi school lived in Kasuga Village, Akita County, so they are also called the Kasuga school, and together with the Hirata, Nishigaki, and Shimizu schools, they formed the four major schools of Higo metalwork. The Hayashi family lineage began with Matashichi, and was succeeded by the second Fujihira (Shigemitsu), the third Fujiyaefusa, the fourth Heizo Shigetsugu, the fifth Matahira Katsuie (Iehisa), the sixth Matahachi, and the seventh Fujihira, and flourished until the end of the Edo period. The first Hayashi family Matashichi, commonly known as Seizaburo, was born in 1605 (Keicho 10) as the second son of the gunsmith Seibei. There is also a theory that he was born in 1613 (Keicho 13). He was employed by Hosokawa Tadatoshi, the lord of the Higo Kumamoto domain, and turned to tsuba craftsmanship, perfecting the Higo tsuba. The Hayashi family was the mainstream, and Matashichi in particular is said to be the father of Higo metalwork. Matashichi's style is specialized in the production of iron tsuba, and is characterized by outstanding iron forging, excellent iron rust, skillful gold inlay, and elaborate openwork. His works include the Important Cultural Property "Hasen Sakura Inlaid Tsuba" and "Sakura Kuyomon Openwork Inlaid Tsuba", as well as the Tomi Matsu Openwork, Nagegiri Openwork, and Gomon Openwork." (Long)
8.00cm x 8.00cm x 0.50cm |
