Yoko-hagi ni-mai-dō tosei gusoku

Yoko-hagi ni-mai-dō tosei gusoku

Samurai armor from the Tsuchiya clan

LITERATURE

• Katchu bugu Juyo bunka shiryo zuroku (Vol. 4), (Tôken shunjû shinbunsha: Tôkyô, 2004), Pag. 90-91
• Nihon katchu bugu kenkyu hozon kai, Shashinshu Kinki no meiko, dai ippen (immages from famous armor of Kinki region vol. 1) (Nihon katchu bugu kenkyu hozon kai, Kinki shibu: Kobe, 1998), pag. 57

An extraordinary samurai armour decorated in almost all its parts with dragon motives.

The thirty-two plate helmet (kabuto) is of type suji-bachi, and presents the inscription: “Myochin Nobuie / Daiei go kinoto tori junigatsu kichijitsu” (A joyous day in the twelfth day of the fifth year of the Daiei Era). On the front of the kabuto the scratch of a sword stroke can be spotted; it might be the sign of a battle, or of an endurance trial. On the fukigaeshi, as for other parts of the armour, the Tsuchiya family crest (kamon) is present; according to the reports, the armour indeed belonged to Tsuchiya Uneme, who was the general of the Osaka Castle during the last years of the Edo period. The maedate displays the name of Hachiman, god of war.

The armour exhibits numerous ornaments depicting dragons. The cuirass is silver inlaid with a massive dragon in the clouds, whereas the sleeves (kote) and the thigh protections (haidate) are maki-e lacquered, and decorated with the same subject.

Samurai armor for sale. Price on application. Please include item stock number: gus-1463