Fuchi-gashira with Phoenix design

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONThis is a pair of matching samurai sword fittings.WHERE WAS IT MADE?These sword fittings were made in Japan during the Edo period (1615-1868).HOW WAS IT MADE?These items were handcrafted from a material known as shakudo, a copper-based alloy containing small amounts of gold and silver that can be polished to a deep shiny blue or blue-black. Fine gold designs of a phoenix have been set, or inlaid, into the shakudo. These designs were hammered into shape and then finely worked with chisels to achieve their realistic forms.Notice the textured surface of the shakudo. This texturing is known as nanako (“fish roe”), and is achieved by hammering a small punch into the soft surface of the metal many times in a regular pattern. The Goto School or workshop, a long-established line of metalsmiths and sword fitting craftsmen descending from Goto Yujo (1440-1512), is known for the nanako technique and for combining inlaid gold designs with shakudo. During the 17th century, legal codes for the samurai specifically required them to carry swords with Goto fittings.HOW WAS IT USED?In most cases the fuchi and kashira form a pair, each made of metal and sharing a design. The kashira is placed at the base of the sword hilt. Traditionally, when the hilt of the sword is braided, the braid passes through the braid slot in the kashira to secure it from moving. The kashira both protects the braid from fraying and strengthens the hilt. The fuchi is placed at the other end of the hilt, and helps to tighten the hilt around the blade, preventing looseness and rattling.WHY DOES IT LOOK LIKE THIS?During the peaceful Edo period, sword fittings were seldom created for swords that were to be used in battle. Instead, these small fittings became a medium for artistic work, appreciated for their exquisite workmanship, variety of designs, and refined beauty. Whereas until around the 1650s, only a small number of motifs were typically used to decorate the sword fittings, in the following years of the Edo period the artists who made these fittings took inspiration from images in books, characters in folktales, and other popular cultural and natural motifs. Swords and their fittings served as status items for samurai. A sword owner would select motifs that expressed his tastes, values and interests. This particular set features the phoenix, a mythical bird.