Japanese Matcha Bowl - Vintage Tenmoku Glazed Chawan

This stunning Kyo-yaki chawan (matcha bowl) features an entrancing tenmoku yuteki glaze, and a wide interior base and foot. Yuteki (油滴 - oil-spot) is one of the most popular style of tenmoku glazes, consisting of silvery spots of iron crystals suspended on a blue or black backdrop, like oil on water. 

The original tenmoku chawan were brought from Song Dynasty China to Japan along with powdered tea culture in the 13th century. Today, they are the most formal of chawan and are used in the tea ceremony on top of lacquer stands when serving tea to VIPs and nobles or when making tea offerings to shrines or the Buddha.

While most Tenmoku glazes are a simple black, occasionally the glaze recipe and the conditions in the kiln are just right, causing the ash in the glaze to separate from the iron in a way that produces beautiful metallic effects, such as the one seen on this cup, called 'yuteki', meaning 'oil-spot'.

Kyo-yaki (京焼) is a type of Japanese pottery that traditionally comes from Kyoto, Japan. The pottery traditions of Kyoto date back to the 5th century and are varied in their styles.

Dimensions:

12.5cm (4.9in) - width
6.4cm (2.5in) - height
200ml - capacity

Condition: Very good

This vintage Japanese item ships from the United States