A TOBIBASHI KAWARI KABUTO (ECCENTRICALLY SHAPED HELMET)

Edo period (1615-1868), 17th century

Edo period (1615-1868), 17th century
The iron helmet worked to resemble the beak of a kite, lacquered entirely in black and mounted with a five-lame Hineno jikoro decorated in bright kinpaku (applied gold foil) and laced in dark blue in kebiki-style lacing, the front adorned with a maedate in the form of a butterfly

With Tokubetsu Hozon (Especially Worthy of Preservation) certificate no. 12042115 issued by the Kokusai Nihon Kachu Bugu Shinko Kyokai (International Society for the Promotion of Japanese Armor)
8 1/4in (20.9cm) high, the helmet only