Tsuba with design of Buddha wheels

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONThis is a sword guard from a samurai sword.WHERE WAS IT MADE?This item was made in Japan during the Edo period (1615-1868).HOW WAS IT MADE?This tsuba was handcrafted from iron.HOW WAS IT USED?The tsuba, or sword guard, lies between the hilt and the blade of a samurai sword. The tsbua served to prevent the hand from sliding down the hilt and onto the blade during combat. It consists of an obverse (front) and reverse side. The obverse side is the one that would face the opponent, while the reverse side would come in contact with the hand of the user. For this reason, traditionally tsuba were kept smooth on the reverse side.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 fittings, such as the tsuba, 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. Notice the two wheels that decorate the tsuba. They could allude to a carriage in the “Yugao” chapter in the classic 11th century Japanese novel “Tale of Genji” by Lady Murasaki Shikibu, in which Prince Genji seduces a fragile and innocent lady whom he takes in the carriage to a deserted house where they spend the night. In the morning he discovers that she has died, apparently attacked by the jealous spirit of one of Genji’s other mistresses. After holding a secret funeral, Genji falls ill and does not recover until the following autumn. Alternatively, in a Buddhist context the wheel refers to the Buddha’s first sermon in the Deer Park at Sarnath (in today’s Uttar Pradesh, India), during which he put in motion the “Wheel of the Law.” He preached that all life is suffering and suffering is caused by desire, yet desire can be eliminated by following the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path: right views; right aspirations; right speech; right conduct; right livelihood; right effort; right mindfulness; and right contemplation.Notice the shape of the central hole of the tsuba; it permitted the blade of the sword to pass through. Frequently one or two secondary holes are seen on tsuba; these were made to accommodate other small sword fittings, the kozuka (a small utility knife) and the kogai (a small hairdressing tool shaped like a skewer.)