Artwork preview

Sword Guard (Tsuba)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The object is a circular, dark brown or black metal guard with a distinctive design. The guard has a central elongated shape with a narrow top and wider bottom, and six rounded protrusions extending from the center, three on each side of the central shape, curving outward and ending in rounded tips. The metal appears to be weathered, with visible signs of aging and wear. The background of the image is a plain light gray color. The object is labeled as a Sword Guard, also known as Tsuba, by the artist.

Artwork details

Date:
18th century
Medium:
Iron, gold, copper
Culture:
Japanese
Dimensions:
600 × 600 px
Museum record:
View original
Palette