Beautiful antique katana Tsuba with impressive gold Carp climbing waterfall on the front side, pine tree and waterfall on the reverse side. According to ancient legend, as long as a carp can jump over the dragon gate, it will transform into a real dragon. When the carp jumps over the dragon gate, there will be a dragon hovering in the sky. It is a metaphor for things like being promoted, being promoted, and other things that lead to rapid success. It is also a metaphor for going against the current and working hard. The tsuba (鍔, or 鐔) is usually a round (or occasionally squarish) guard at the end of the grip of bladed Japanese weapons, like the katana and its variations, tachi, wakizashi, tantō, naginata etc. They contribute to the balance of the weapon and to the protection of the hand. The tsuba was mostly meant to be used to prevent the hand from sliding onto the blade during thrusts as opposed to protecting from an opponent's blade. The chudan no kamae guard is determined by the tsuba and the curvature of the blade. The diameter of the average katana tsuba is 7.5–8 centimetres (3.0–3.1 in), wakizashi tsuba is 6.2–6.6 cm (2.4–2.6 in), and tantō tsuba is 4.5–6 cm (1.8–2.4 in). Dimensions: 7.7 x 7.3 x 0.5 cm Weight: 137 grams Good condition, there are signs of wear from age and normal use, rust, please also look at the listed photos for a reference. Will be well packaged and shipping by Japan Post in fast delivery.