Yojiro Tsuji

Japanese: 辻与次郎 - つじ・よじろう

Year of birth: Year of birth and death unknown. A kettle maker from the Momoyama period. He was from Tsujimura, Kurita County, Omi Province (Shiga Prefecture), and lived at the Sanjo Kamaza in Kyoto. His surname was Tsuji and his given name was Sanehisa, and in his early works he is recorded as Yojiro, and in his later years as Yojiro. According to Nagoshi Masataka's "Chuikakei," he was the second son of Nagoshi Yoshimasa, and died at the age of 48 in 1603 (Keicho 8), but this is incorrect, as only works from after that date remain. Also, Nishimura Michiji's "Kamashi no Yuiso" states that he was a disciple of Nishimura Michihito, who was also at the Sanjo Kamaza. He was famous as the kettle maker for Sen no Rikyu, and as the leading kettle maker of his time, Toyotomi Hideyoshi allowed him to use the title of Tenkaichi. Many of Yojiro's kettles were cast according to Rikyu's tastes, and the most famous are the Amida-do kettles, Unryu kettles, Shiho kettles, and Shiribari kettles, which show unique shapes, patterns, and textures that differ from the Ashiya kettles and Tenmei kettles that were popular during the Muromachi period. In particular, he invented a finishing method called Yaki-nuki, in which the cast kettles are put back into the fire to tighten the surface of the kettles, and he also performed a technique called Ha-raku, in which the wings of the kettles, which were originally intended to be hung in the furnace, were intentionally knocked off after casting to give them the aged look of old kettles. There are no kettles with names or dates inscribed, but there are crocodile bells, temple bells, and lanterns that bear inscriptions, and the oldest known is the bronze crocodile bell of Hyosuji Taisha Shrine in Shiga Prefecture, inscribed with the year 1590, the iron lantern of Toyokuni Shrine in Kyoto City inscribed with the year 5 of the Keicho era, and the temple bell of Saizenji Temple in Akita Prefecture inscribed with the year 15 of the Keicho era. In addition, the temple bell of Fukakusa Hoto-ji Temple in Kyoto, which was burned down, was made in the same year, so the period when it was active is roughly known.

(Harada Kazutoshi)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

生年：生没年不詳
桃山時代の釜師。近江国(滋賀県)栗多郡辻村の出身で,京都三条釜座に住した。姓は辻,名を実久といい,作品では初期に与二郎,晩年に与次郎と記している。名越昌孝の『鋳家系』によれば,名越善正の次男で慶長8(1603)年,48歳で没したというが誤りで,それ以降の作が現存している。また西村道冶の『釜師之由緒』では同じ三条釜座の西村道仁の弟子としている。千利休の釜師として有名で,当代第一の釜師として豊臣秀吉から天下一の称号を名乗ることを許された。与次郎の釜の多くは利休の好みによって鋳造されたものが多く,阿弥陀堂釜,雲竜釜,四方釜,尻張釜などが著名であるが,室町時代に盛行した芦屋釜,天命釜とは異なった独創的な形,文様,肌合を示している。特に技術的には,鋳上がった釜を再び火中に入れて釜肌をしめる焼抜きという仕上法を創始し,また本来炉に掛けるための釜の羽を鋳造後故意に打落して古作の釜のような古びた味わいをだす羽落を行った。釜には名や年号を記した作品はないが,鰐口,梵鐘,灯籠には在銘作があり,確実なものとして天正18(1590)年銘の滋賀県兵主大社銅鰐口を最古に,慶長5年銘の京都市豊国神社鉄灯籠,同15年銘の秋田県西善寺梵鐘が知られている。また,焼失した京都深草宝塔寺梵鐘は同16年の作で,活躍年代がほぼ知られる。

(原田一敏)

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