ELEVEN TSUBA (HAND GUARDS)Edo period (1615-1868), 17th to 19th centuryAll iron, the first chiselled, pierced, and with gold overlay as two cockerels; the second chiselled and pierced as twoaoi leaves, signedEchizen no ju Kinai saku; the third chiselled and with gold inlay depicting aho-o bird; the fourth chiselled as aho-o bird; the fifth in the form of threenasubi (aubergines), signedChoshu no ju Hisatsugu; the sixth formed as two dragonflies; the seventh chiselled and with gold inlay depicting baskets and waves; the eighth chiselled and pierced as sixawabi (abalone shells), signedChoshu Hagi no ju Kawaji saku; the ninth in the form of a grazing horse and halter, the signature worn to the point of illegibility; the tenth with slight gold inlay, formed assuigyu (water buffaloes), with signatureYasuchika; the eleventh with slight gold inlay formed as a flowering peony plant, signedEdo no ju Masatsune (Haynes 04737).The smallest: 6.4cm (2½in) high; the largest: 8.2cm (3 3/16in) high. (11).