This elegant senchawan (small teacup for sencha) is thrown in an open asagao-gata (morning glory/conical) shape from Asahi-yaki’s signature hanshi (燔師) clay, dug from Shirakawa and Oriiyama in and around Uji. Coated in a simple transparent glaze, the warm tones, hue gradients, and spots all come from the clay itself as it is rapidly heated to around 1400°C in Asahi-yaki’s wood-fired climbing kiln. The outside is decorated with a simple brushstroke of slip (liquid clay), a technique known as hakeme.

The morning glory shape is favoured in Uji where the tea traditionally has a lighter colour, as the wide lip allows for quicker cooling of the tea and for easy drinking, while the narrowing of the shape towards the foot concentrates the tea, making the colour of the tea easier to see.

Before using it for the first time, it is recommended to soak the piece in water for 10 minutes. This will dislodge any dust from the clay as well as slow down the natural development of patina in the glaze.

This teacup was made by the skilled craftsmen at the Asahi-yaki studio and wood-fired in their climbing kiln.

Asahi-yaki (朝日焼) are a world-renowned pottery studio located at the foot of Mt. Asahi in Uji. Their founder produced wares for the tea ceremony in the late 16th-early 17th centuries, at the height of chanoyu’s artistic development, and his works were loved by chajin Kobori Enshū (who succeeded Furuta Oribe and Sen-no-Rikyū as leading tea master). Since then, Asahi-yaki have continued to make wares that capture Enshū’s aesthetic philosophy of ‘Kirei-Sabi’, which is a more refined take on Rikyū’s ‘Wabi(-sabi)’.

Today, they are headed by 16th generation potter Matsubayashi Hōsai XVI who leads his studio in producing wares for both the Japanese tea ceremony and for the brewing of loose-leaf teas. They continue to use local Uji clay, mined from the surrounding hills, which they call ‘hanshi’. Since the 8th generation head, they also make sencha and gyokuro wares out of porcelain from Kyūshu.

Dimensions:

8.5cm (3.3in) - width
5cm (2in) - height
60ml - capacity

Condition: New

This Japanese item ships from the United States.