Happy 4th to everyone!

I have come across another piece of old Asian metalwork. This piece has a paper tag underneath, describing it as a XVII Century Japanese "War Hat" but it could be from some other Asian dynasty.
It has a dragon and cloud pattern. In one photo, you can see the dragon's head and in the other photo a open claw can be seen.

Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, it appears that this cool example of repousse work was turned into a lamp shade :-( as it has a little finial bolted to the top (from underneath).

After lightly rubbing it with oil, I found what appears to be the maker's signature near the bottom edge. I tried to obtain photos from different angles, but since the mark traverses across the curvature of the hat and is very faded, it was extremely difficult to photograph. It would be really cool if someone out there can make a bit of what it says! If not, please enjoy the photos anyway!war hatwar hat 2war hat 3mark-1mark-2mark-3