Tsuba with depiction of Shoki and Oni

Tsuba with depiction of Shoki and Oni is held by Badisches Landesmuseum Karlsruhe (Germany). Description supplied by the holding institution: The circular sword guard, a so-called "tsuba", belongs to the "maru gata" type.

The work is attributed to the "Yamato Jû Ietsugu" school and stylistically reveals itself as a work of the "Sue-Kagamishi" (mirror casters). The guard is dedicated on both sides to the depiction of the myth of Shôki and Oni, the demon queller Shôki and his adversary, the demon Oni. Constantly on the hunt for the souls of people lying on their deathbeds, according to Japanese belief Oni is a hybrid creature. He possesses half-human, half-demonic features and is often depicted with three eyes, a large, gaping mouth, horns, and sharp claws.

His opponent is the demon catcher or demon queller Shôki, who combines features of the Chinese deity Zhongkui and is regarded as the god of the afterlife. In positive silhouette on one half of the sword guard ("seppa dai"), Shôki appears in Chinese clothing… The collection record gives measurements height: 8.4 cm, width: 8.4 cm, depth: 0.6 cm. Published through Europeana; how far this object represents a wider collectible type has not yet been independently verified.