SWORD-FURNITURE
ground covered with fish-roe[1] (nanako) diaper—that is to say, very small granulations like the roe of a fish. It was formerly a point of etiquette not to wear, on occasions of ceremony, swords of which the kozuka and kōgai were without the fish-roe ground. Those having the ishime (stone-grain) ground or the ji-migakii (polished ground) were not considered suitable for such occasions. But among the works of the later iye-bori there are many that have not the nanako ground. It is to be observed that the fuchi and the kashira are not included in the rule.
Note.—The fuchi and the kashira do not properly belong to the class of sword "ornaments," being, in fact, essential parts of the mounting. They form with the seppa and the habaki inseparable elements of the mounted sword. The term nanako is derived from the resemblance that the microscopic granulations bear to fish-roe. In the language of old Japan, "fish" was called na, and this with the suffix ko (egg) made the compound na-no-ko, or nanako.
None of the early representatives of the Goto family (iye-bori) made a business of carving anything but kōzuka, me-nuki, and kōgai. Only from the time (1570—1631) of Tokujo, the fifth representative, did they occasionally sculpture fuchi, kashira, and tsuba. Specimens of their work in these latter lines are very rare, and should be correspondingly prized. In recent times it is occasionally found that a gold crest (coat of arms) originally chiselled on a kozuka or kōgai of old make has been detached and fixed on the fuchi and kashira, or on the fuchi alone, or on the tsuba; and in other cases gold-plated crests or incised designs have been newly attached to, or cut on, the original ground. Such objects are very rare, nor would devices of the kind have been employed by the masters except in compliance with orders that could not be disobeyed.
- ↑ There can be little doubt that the Japanese took this idea of "fish-roe" granulations from Chinese porcelain. One of the most admired tours de force of the Chinese keramist was a glaze completely covered with tiny granulations which he compared to millet seed. Crackle of the finest and most regular character was known in the Middle Kingdom as "fish-roe" crackle, and these much esteemed grounds must have inspired the nanako of Japan.
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