Pair of Sword-Grip Ornaments (Menuki)

Menuki are decorative elements on the hilt of a sword. These decorative elements are often worked out to the smallest detail and are an artistic masterpiece. The perfect details in the smallest space give these components their special aesthetics. It is theorized that they evolved from the head of the original two-piece mekugi. The original design evolved into the independent decorative elements that are attached to the sword handle, which is detached from the mekugi. In some cases, versions with a pin on the back and a "negative" counterpart on the other side are still deliberately made. However, the version separated from the mekugi has become the standard solution.