B425.  Japanese Sword Guards Museum of Fine Arts Boston, by Okabe-Kakuya.1908.  Hardbound, 6 ¼ x 9 ½”, about 180 pages in English.  This is a catalog of an exhibit at the BMFA and it is one of the earliest books in English on the subject.  The book leads with a history of the sword guard and short treatments of many schools of tsuba making.  There follows notes on 501 tsuba in the collection, an index of artist’s names, and 35 pages of crisp black & white photos of selected tsuba.

There is a bit of shelf wear to the edges of the covers: nothing serious.  Otherwise condition is fine.  There is an inscription inside the front cover.  1 pound, 3 ounces.  Now $45.