A Hizen Katana in koshirae

Go-mai uchidashi do tosei gusoku Samurai armor decorated with an embossed rabbit Edo period, 19th century This samurai armor is complete and original, with consistent elements...

Dangae do tosei gusoku A blue-laced samurai armor with cuirass of double style Edo Period, 18th century Kabuto [helmet]: Black lacquered eboshi-nari kabuto, in the form of this ...

Hon-kozane ni-mai do tosei gusoku Samurai armor in revival style Edo Period, 17th to 18th century Signature on kabuto: Jōshū jū Saotome Ietada Kabuto [helmet]: A russet iron (tetsu sabiji) sixty-two plate kabuto, each mounted with twenty-five small tapered standing rivets (ko-boshi) of decreasing size; the front plate, larger than the others, is fitted with two lines of rivets, while the rear one is left empty, for a total of 1.550 rivets. The typical "Saotome-byo", an extra rivet which is almost an additional signature of the Saotome armorers, is visible inside. Maedate [helmet crest]: Kuwagata (stylized horns) with shakudo kuwagata-dai (support) fitted with three hanabishi (flower-shaped family crest) and a large gilt-wood peony Menpō [mask]: A russet iron (tetsu sabiji) ressei-men (mask with fierce expression) Dō [cuirass]: Ni-mai dō (made in two parts) with hon-kozane (true scale) construction. Stencilled leather plates with engraved shakudo borders, fine pierced kanamono (application) bearing a hanabishi. Sode [shoulder guards]: Large type (ō-sode), with fine kanamono and decorations. Kote [sleeves]: In russet iron, with a hanabishi on the back of the hand (tekko). Haidate [thigh guard]: Of hakama type (full trousers), made of tied rectangular iron plates. Suneate [shin guards]: Finished in black urushi lacquer. Accessories: A saihai (commander’s baton); high-level kara-bitsu (storage box) With its large sode (shoulder guards) and old-fashioned construction, the style of the armor is reminiscent of the medieval suits...

Toppai kabuto, Samurai helmet from the Kajiwara clan. Edo period, dated 1802. Signatures: 筑藩士官 梶原 景泰 命春田 昌芳造之 享和二年壬 秋也 Chikushū (?) Shikan (officer) Kajiwara Kageyasu (?) Mikoto (lo...

Okitenugui kabuto Samurai helmet shaped as a head towel Saika, early Edo period, 17th century The Haruta armorers who moved to Kii province in the early 17th century, took the name from the village where they worked, Saika, near Wakayama, possibly on request of the local daimyo, Asano Yukinaga, a great armour amateur. Specialised in the construction of plate helmets, they produced mainly two typologies of kabuto: one with six plates covered with a chrysanthemum-shaped plate on top and one shaped as a “head towel”, called okitenugui. The latter type of kabuto employs very heavy plates crafted in a curved manner and was improved in order to make it resistant to firearms. This okitenugui kabuto features some distinctive decorations of the Haruta school, including the application of cut-out iron elements, including eyebrows, washers and lozenge-shaped decorations on the sides. The ring on the top, however, is a rare feature and could be used to hold a small war flag.

A Shinto Sunnobi Tanto by Takahashi Naganobu, 1846 Unsho Takahashi Naganobu / A lucky day of August Koka san-nen (1846) Yokota became monk with this sword - NBTHK Tokubetsu Hozon To...

Author Paul Gunther and Gay Giordano Cutting-edge examples of the use of optical illusion in design—from trompe l’oeil to anamorphosis—to solve various challenges, be they space or budget related, or that act as aesthetic features in architecture and the fields that rub elbows with it: art, design, and furniture. This magical volume presents the startling world of illusion in design as employed by today’s architects, interior designers, furniture designers, and others at work bending the appearance of reality for purposes of aesthetics or practicality or fun. From a faux bookcase that masks a room or Prohibition-style bar, to the mind-boggling Escher-like effects achieved by Casa Ceramica, whose optical illusion of a floor dips into valleys and rises into mounds (but is in reality flat), the book is a revelation and an inspiration. It offers to us the possibility that nearly anything can be done, if it can be imagined—even in our own homes. The authors look at residences across the globe, as well as spaces beyond the home, that utilize a myriad of surprising techniques. Included are projects by conceptual designers such as Studio Malka and Vector Architects, as well as established practitioners such as Ferguson and Shamamian, G. P. Schafer, Peter Pennoyer...

La Pub in URSS dans les annees 20 Anikst, Mikhail Published by Editions du Chene, 1987 This work describes the extraordinary emulation aroused in Russian a...

A spectacular collection of 50 magnificent contemporary houses across the globe, each built to exist harmoniously amid the trees. Take a walk through luscious jungles, get lost among snowy evergreens, and look out from mossy banks across vast Nordic fjords in Living in the Forest...

Beaumarly Paris (Hardcover) In stock in Los Angeles Icons of the Parisian lifestyle, Beaumarly establishments encompass more than twenty ultra-stylish cafés, hotels, nightclubs, and restaurants dotted around the mythical City of Light, from the heart of the Louvre to the rooftop of the Centre Pompidou, from Saint-Germain-des-Prés to the Golden Triangle, from Pigalle to the Bastille. Created by Thierry and Gilbert Costes, who over thirty years have been transforming the way Parisians experience their city, Beaumarly properties include Café Marly, Café Beaubourg, Hôtel Amour, Brasserie Thoumieux, and Club Matignon. Each distinctive Beaumarly venue offers a journey for the senses born of close collaborations with the biggest names in architecture, art, and design, such as Christian de Portzamparc...

Antique print titled ‘View of Uraga, Yedo Bay'. View of Uraga, Japan. This print originates from 'Narrative of the expedition of an American squadron to the China seas and Japan, per...

Author Nina Campbell, with Giles Kime, Photographs by Paul Raeside The interior design of this New England seaside escape—by decorating legend Nina Campbell—explores a myriad of the...