A thing of beauty
Related Images
This object is a Japanese style sword guard. Sword guards are called tsuba (鍔) in Japanese, and are considered one of the most important fittings of the sword. In fact, their role is to protect the palm of the hand when holding the sword and help balance the sword itself.
Due to its placement on the sword, the tsuba is one of the most visible elements when worn, which made it apt to being decorated. For this reason, craftsmen created tsuba in all sorts of shapes, styles and metals. Tsuba can range from simple metal plates to being extremely decorated.
Japanese sword owners (which includes, but is not limited to, samurai warriors) owned multiple tsuba and other matching sword fittings for each blade, and would choose which ones to use depending on the occasion.