Male Tancho Goshiki – Yagenji Koi Farm
Tancho Goshiki is a Goshiki whose only red is a single round mark on the head. The rest of the fish keeps the Goshiki's usual colors and pattern. At heart it is still the 'five-color' koi with a netted base and a Kohaku-style red pattern.
About the Goshiki
Goshiki is a 'five-color' koi: a Kohaku-style red pattern over a netted body of white, light blue, dark blue and black. Goshiki ('five colors') blends white, red, black, light blue and dark blue. It was developed in the early twentieth century by crossing Asagi with Sanke (often an Aka Sanke). Once judged in Kawarimono, Goshiki now shows alongside Koromo in Japanese competition. Modern Goshiki have become very popular because their netting grows richer with age.
Color and pattern
Each scale on the body carries a dark center or edge, forming an even net over white and blue. A Kohaku-type hi pattern sits on top. In modern Goshiki the hi is ideally clean with no netting inside it. The overall color can range from light to almost black depending on lineage, water temperature and age.
The Tancho mark
Tancho is named after the tancho-zuru, Japan's red-crowned crane, and the round red mark also echoes the Japanese flag, so Tancho koi carry special meaning in Japan. The ideal Tancho is a single round or slightly oval spot, centered on the head between the eyes and not touching them, with crisp edges and no other red on the body. Only Tancho Kohaku, Sanke and Showa compete in the Tancho class. On other varieties the Tancho mark is judged within the variety's own class.
In your collection
Goshiki change with the water. Cooler temperatures usually lighten the body, and warmer water darkens the netting, so the same fish can look very different from season to season. Modern Goshiki with clean hi and fine netting are among the most sought-after koi in Japanese shows.
What collectors look for
- Clean, well-defined hi with crisp edges
- Even, fine netting on the body
- A clean head
- A balanced, Kohaku-quality pattern
- A round, centered head spot with crisp edges
- Spot clear of the eyes
- No other red on the body
