Bugei Lion Dog Tanto

This is an older generation and long discontinued Bugei Lion Dog tanto, possibly the first gen.
I believe the blade is made of forge folded Manchurian rail steel and is in kanmuri otoshi zukuri sugata with a gunome midare hamon and a beautiful grain pattern.

From what I can tell, the shishi themed fuchi, kashira and tsuba are hand made/assembled/decorated, not cast. They seem to be made of copper with silver appliques. The surfaces are covered in hand-punched nanako patterning and the applied designs are highly detailed.

The tsuka has been re-wrapped in green 6mm imported silk ito in katate-maki style, over premium samegawa panels featuring a very large emperor’s node. The menuki are of large peonies in a two tone patina and the mekugi is made of buffalo horn.

The brass habaki features a wonderfully engraved shishi design on the omote side. There is normal wear and a small dent near the top of the ura side. The detail is sharp and impressive for a production piece.

The saya fits snugly and is deeply lacquered in black with a high polish and has three inlaid spiral designs near the kojiri, made of what looks like copper and silver. There are a couple of small scuffs and normal overall wear considering the age but could easily be buffed back to full polish with some tlc. The saya has buffalo horn koiguchi and kurikata and is wrapped with a black silk sageo.

The tanto hasn’t been used to cut as far as I can tell but does show appropriate handling wear for it’s age.

The stats are:

oal: 17 1/4″
nagasa: 9″
motohaba: 27mm
sakihaba: 21mm
motokasane: 5mm
sakikasane: 3mm
weight w/saya: 17.7 oz
weight w/out saya: 13 oz
tsuka length: 5 1/4″