Dark Horse Showa Koi...
Showa from Marudo. About 30cm in size at the moment.
Note: We get these things wrong about as often as we get them right. Small Koi are always a bi of a gamble - they can change and develop in ways you cannot predict. However, you should try and stack the odds in your favour and enjoy your Koi. That said, if you like a Koi then buy it - YOU are the one who enjoys your Koi and you buy them for YOUR enjoyment, no one else's! We've lost count of the times when we've thought a Koi was total rubbish only to have it turn into a beauty and of course the Koi that we thought would develop spectacularly develop into total rubbish. Doesn't matter, we still love them all just the same.
Anyway, herewith our thoughts on this Koi.
Summary:
This Koi was (again) overlooked largely in the auction until spotted by AntonCoetzee, who bagged a steal at R750, under a third of this Koi's true value. In fact we also had a second Dark Horse in a small Sanke that sold for a ludicrous figure - we think because it had some split fins - which for future reference you should never count against a Koi - fins generally heal themselves completely.
This is a classic Hi Showa. First to note is the size - at 30cm it's already quite a large Koi when compared to typical Tosai. This Koi however is in its second year so it is Nissai, although we are right at the beginning of year 2. It should put on some impressive growth as a result this year.
With Showa being typically slow growing we are looking for hints of size to come on a small Showa Koi. Right at point A you have two hints. The first is a good strong 'tail tube' where there appears to be some muscle holding the tail firmly in position. Also at Point A we see a nice white break or 'odome' in the pattern - a good positive point.
It is possible to see from the photo that the scalation of the Koi is good and strong - big scales tend to equate to a big fish - this you can see at Point F. The body shape of the fish is empasized by the very good white patch making its presence felt at Point B. As this Koi grows you should start to see more of this white lending an attractive eye pleasing focal point on the Koi.
This is complimented by the very good sumi (black) at point E. This is a young Koi and we expect that the sumi on the Koi will firm up as she gets older.
Body shape on the Koi is very good given the age. The lines behind the shoulder are powerful and what we expect to see on a Koi with good growth potential. Point D shows well formed pectoral fins that are quite large - something we like to see because its an indication that the Koi is female. Also on the pectoral fins the Motoguru is strong, particularly at Point D - good to see on such a young Koi and a further confirmation of the sumi quality. The fact that it is not balanced across both pectoral fins at the moment is not something that concerns us all that much.
At Point C we can see the sumi head pattern forming to hopefully attain the powerful menware head pattern where the sumi forms a neat dividing line between the head and the shoulders of the Koi. This alone is worth R750! It looks to be developing nicely.
Point G is perhaps a small area of concern for pattern conformation. It looks like a small white window at this stage and perhaps it will stay that way or perhaps it will develop into something better. The white just behind Point E though is attractive and it is our feeling that when this Koi finishes at full size the white pattern will hopefully join up and become most desirable. Even if this little window doesn't develop into anything at all being located as it is next to strong sumi is still attractive.
Sumi development on this Koi has a long way to go still. This is one of those Koi that will be fascinating to watch as it develops and gets better and better. Yes the head is completely red, but frankly the other qualities of the Koi are such that when a facial sumi pattern develops - which we expect given the black left nostril and sumi on the nose this Koi will be a breathtaking beauty.
And so this is our Dark Horse pick of this auction - with the small Sanke a close second behind it! We look forward to seeing it in the future - good luck Anton with this bargain Koi!
When selecting Koi in Japan these are the kinds of things that we look for on each and every Koi. We visit Japan regularly so if you are after a quality Koi just drop us a line and we'll source it for you with pleasure and at the right price to suit you of course!
