Artwork preview

Knife Handle (Kozuka)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Dark brown, rectangular object with rounded edges, horizontal orientation. Left side features several lines of engraved writing in a foreign script. Right side depicts a carved figure of a man with a large head, thick eyebrows, beard and mustache; he wears a headband and carries a sword at his side. The carving also includes gold accents and foliage. The background of the image is off-white. The object is labeled as "Knife Handle (Kozuka)" and attributed to the artist.

Artwork details

Date:
ca. 1615–1868
Medium:
Copper-silver alloy (shibuichi), copper, gold, copper-gold alloy (shakudō)
Culture:
Japanese
Dimensions:
599 × 337 px
Museum record:
View original
Palette