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62 Plate Samurai Kabuto w Buddhist Prayer On Each Panel browse these categories for related items... Directory: Antiques: Regional Art: Asian: Japanese: Swords and Related: Pre 1700: Item # 948360
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| Antique Samurai Kabuto While I believe this kabuto to be an important item, performing research is understandably difficult. What follows is the best description of the historical facts that I can put together. The physical condition of the helmet is marginal. There is significant chipping to the lacquer and the lacing, which appears original, is in need of repair. Please see photographs for appropriate condition reference. The crest which can be seen on the left side of the helmet is that of the Tsutsui clan, a retainer family for the clan of Oda Nobunaga. The Tsutsui clan mainly controlled Yamato province during this time and gained in power as the fortune of Oda Nobunaga increased. After the patriarch of the family, Tsutsui Junkei was killed in battle the fortunes of Tsutsui family plummeted and at this point the family seems to have disappeared from a historical context. The original owner of this kabuto seems to have taken it to the Sei-Hachimangu temple for a blessing. The large center panel and all of the sixty one small plates, except the immediate right and immediate left of the large panel, are adorned with a very popular Buddhist prayer in gold writing. This prayer roughly translates to ˇ°Glory to the mystic scripture of the lotus of the true lawˇ±. The plate to the immediate right of the center panel reads ˇ°Amaterasu OˇŻOmikamiˇ± or, read in a different way ˇ°Ten-Sho-Daijinˇ±; both of which mean the God of the Sun of which the imperial family is descended. The plate to the immediate left of the center panel reads ˇ°Sei-Hachimanguˇ± which is the name of the temple where the prayers were written. The temple Sei-Hachimangu was originally built for the emperor Saga who reigned during the years 809-823. The temple was originally built in 814. While it may on the surface seem strange to mix Buddhist and Shinto themes, this is actually a practice which is very Japanese. Buddhism and Shinto are two quite unantagonistic religions which have historically fed off of one another. The historical value of this kabuto as well as its high quality (62 plates) make it a very noteworthy piece despite condition issues. | ||||||||||||||
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