Sword with blackened fittings

This two-handed sword features darkened guard, pommel and pommel-nut. In order to darken the fittings to a suitably dark tone to contrast with the brass elements, I used a thermal method. The steel fittings were polished and cleaned thoroughly before being buried in a bed of coals and ash. The ash layer helps keep unwanted oxygen away from the metal as it heats up. For obvious reasons, no air is worked through the forge. As soon as the piece reaches a dark cherry red colour (judged in a dark room), it is briskly removed from the ash bed and all ash shaken of. A soft dry brush helps remove the odd patches of clinging ash. After a few second of exposure to air, the piece is quenched in oil. Overheating or taking too long before quenching will lead to a layer that is too thick and flaky. This method is only one of many used to blue or darken steel fittings.

Horse and gourd themed tsuba

Inspired by a series of recent unexpected events, I decided to work on this project. It refers to the sennin Chokwaro summoning a horse from his gourd and the expression 'as unexpected as a horse from a gourd.' The pictures follow the project through the various stages.
The clay mixture used during the rust inducing process consists of finely ground red ochre and anthracite.