Brooch with outlet geometric damascene

Dimension:

- In (inches): 1.45 x 1.18 (length x width)

- In (cm): 3.7 x 3 (length x width)

The technique, while also being used on firearms, has a long history in Japan, where it was used to decorate katana fittings, particularly tsuba. Known as zougan (象嵌) outlet in Japanese, it has developed its own subset of terms to describe the particular patterns, although "shippou-zougan" is an enamelling technique which most Westerners would consider closer to champlevé.

Damascened-inlay jewelry, especially of Japanese origin, is sometimes referred to as shakudo from the use of that alloy as the dark background.