8 Sided Ordinal Compass Points Themed Kanayama Tsu T-Shirt

The caption says "hakkakzu kanayama" which roughly translates to 8 sided figure kanayama", which is a brief description of the primary shape in the composition as well as the attribution to the group of artisans who made it. The name "Kanayama" means iron mountain. Kanayama tsuba were most likely produced in the Owari area of Japan from the early 15th Century (beginning of Muromachi period) to the 17th Century (the beginning of the Edo period). Kanayama tsuba are characterized by being small, compact, and are usually made from a dense quality iron. There were no signed examples and they were always sukashi (open cut out) designs. The motifs were either very enigmatic or representational of various objects such as bells, hats, well covers and even torii gates. This particular piece probably dates to the late Muromachi period (16th century).