Tsuba or sword guard of shibuichi, a patinated alloy of silver and copper, depicting Liu Hai (J: Gama Sennin) with his toad in gold inlay: Japan, by Otsuryuken Masayuki, c. 1750

Tsuba or sword guard of shibuichi, a patinated alloy of copper and silver, with two white herons in silver, reeds in gold and a stream: Japan, Ishiguro School, by Masayoshi, 1764-1852

Tsuba or sword guard of iron, with flowers in gold and a butterfly in two tints of gold and shakudo: Japan, possibly Yanagawa school.

Tsuba or sword guard of iron, circular, with a pine tree with apertures serving as the two holes for the kogai and kozuka: Japan, made by Masatsune of Musashi province

Iron tsuba or sword guard of iron, a kogai hitsu on the right and a kogai hitsu on the left, depicting a dragon: Japan, Omi province, Hikone, by Yumeishi Nomura Soken, mid 18th century

Tsuba or sword guard of iron, oval and pierced, and chased in imitation of decayed and wormed wood with a spider's web in gold inlay: Japan, school of Kaneie, 17th century

Tsuba or sword guard of iron, circular and pierced, with koi or carp with eyes of gold inlay ascending the waves: Japan, Go-kinai or Kinai school

Presentation tsuba or sword guard of iron, aoi (hollyhock) shape with trefoil double holes, decorated with phoenix and paulownia in gold nunome-zogan (cloth grain-inlay): Japan, Kyoto or Awa province, late 18th century

Tsuba or sword guard of shibuichi, with a tang aperture, Daruma arriving at Japan on a bamboo leaf, welcomed by a deity, and a waterfall on the reverse: Japan, 1700 - 1750, by Yanagawa Naomasa

Tsuba or sword guard of sentoku, with a shakudo plugged kogai hitsu, and a Tartar archer shooting a bird, with a child about to retrieve it on the reverse: Japan, Nara school, by Sugiura Nagaharu Joi, 19th century

Tsuba or sword guard of sentoku, a variety of brass, mokko shape with plovers, ishime ground with copper and silver inlay: Japan, made by Yasuchika, 18th century

Tsuba or sword guard of shakudo, an alloy of bronze and gold with blue-black patina, with a nanako ground with a regal peony and a Chinese lion, and applied script: Japan, Yanagawa School

Tsuba or sword guard of shibuichi (patinated alloy of silver and copper), with only a kozuka hitsu, and with a dragon and Mt Fuji, Miho-no-Matsubara on reverse, Hamano style: Japan, made by Hakuryo, 19th century

Tsuba or sword guard of copper, with only a kozuka hitsu, and with a pine tree and a plover (chidori), and an ishime ground, style of Korin: Japan

Tsuba or sword guard of shibuichi, with design of Han Xin (J: Kanshin) crawling through the legs of the braggart, and gold, shakudo and silver inlay: Japan, by Ichinomiya Nagatsune, 1719 - 1786

Tsuba or sword guard of iron, elliptic hexagonal with only a kozuka hitsu, with crested waves and a sun: Japan, Ishiguro School, made by Hideaki, 1861