Sword Guard (Tsuba)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Round, dark brown metal object with a central oval hole. The object is a sword guard, known as a tsuba. The tsuba features an eagle on the right side, with outstretched wings. The eagle has yellow eyes and talons. The eagle appears to be standing on a tree stump or rock. There are yellow leaves and branches around the eagle and on a tree at the top. The background of the tsuba depicts a mountain range on the left and wavy lines at the bottom, possibly representing water. There is an inscription in the center of the tsuba, on either side of the oval hole. The tsuba has a dark brown patina with some lighter brown areas. The background behind the tsuba is light gray. The artist of the tsuba is not visibly credited on the object itself; however, the title of the object is Sword Guard (Tsuba).