What is the style of this Yunomi teacup?

[Smari]

Hi all,
I was going through various sites for a hunt of teaware and came across this:



I am so in love with this but I don't know what style of this is and know where else to find other different styles of this type. It's mainly the "clear crystal" spots that I am looking for in the cups.

May someone please help me? Thanks!

[Bert]

WOW!

can't help you otherwise.

[brandon]

The general style is of the Arita prefecture, and the specific technique is referred to by Toru as suisho bori. If you do a Google search you will come up with one or two other sites in English, but most of them are with Artistic Nippon. If you do not fancy his two offerings, you might go out on a limb and ask him if he has any others readily available. Be prepared to pay a fair price for these hand crafted pieces.

[JadeKitsune]

Smari,

That is breathtaking with the lights shining through it... lovely find!

Brandon - Interesting research.

So what sort of of tea was this made for I wonder?

~Jessica

[brandon]

This is made for Japanese tea, mainly sencha or bancha. The taller cup generally indicates that the cup is meant for a family member after dinner.

A smaller yunomi would be meant for sharing with guests - a lid on this small yunomi is an invitation for the guest to stay awhile and relax.

Of course, if you snuck a jade oolong into this cup, no one would be the wiser.

[Smari]

That's wonderful information Brandon! Thank you so much!

I also just recently found something similar in GeekGirlUnveiled's Flickr gallery and contacted her about it. She told me that this type was called "Rice grain porcelain."
http://www.flickr.com/photos/g...453917477/
an example of Arita porcelain just like you said.

I searched on ebay and saw something similar to this but not as breathtaking as this one. Before I do contact Artistic Nippon, I'm going to try to find others that may be interesting, too. My mission now is to find a whole set of these beauties

JadeKitsume - indeed this piece is one breathtaking one. I can't wait to get my hands on it

[Ritva]

The Japanese Green Tea Shops http://www.japanesegreenteashops.com/yakimonomeoto.html also has rice grain yunomis but they are not as gorgeous as your piece. I'm not sure if this is true but I've heard that rice grain porcelain is made by putting actual rice grains in the objects before firing them. In the very high temperature of the firing process the rice grains are burned completely leaving holes that glazing will fill. Your cups have spherical spots so maybe they have used some other grains instead of rice.

[Salsero]

Here is some mmore teaware with holes, but it's expensive and it looks like you have to buy a pot.
http://www.japanesegreenteashops.com/ar ... acups.html

[Smari]

Aha, thank you Ritva and Sal! Those are pretty, too! It indeed is on the pricey side. I really like the tea sets on that page, so I might just end up getting them since I love how unique they look.

[JadeKitsune]

Those are beautiful! I love the pattern inside the lip of the glass.

Which reminds me... I need to seek out some new tea glasses.

Thanks for sharing!

[Travelogue88]

Hi, I actually have one which was a lucky stroke off of ebay. The person whom I bought it from is getting more (hopefully).
This is what I have:

[Victoria]

They are beautiful, I bought a set of two myself.
The lid is a bit precarious to hold.
Congrats!

[betta]

You can ask Toru san of Artisticnippon to get more articles of similar model.
On my browser it's written that it is Nagasaki porcelain - Suisho bori teacup.
Last year I visited Japan, I came across the same cup. To my observation, Toru San offers his porcelains at the price sold in a local market. You won't find it cheaper even if you buy it in Japan.

[Loveteabowls]

This is Hasami ware from the area southwest of Arita in Nagasaki prefecture. The "mesh-like" design is typical and known as "amime" style.

If you want to find a fantastic range of yunomi (and matcha chawan) try:
en ot search dot borderless dot rakuten dot com/kitchen/japanese_tableware.

The website is in English, and there are thousands to choose from. You can order with your credit card and receive them a few days later. Prices are what you would pay in Japan - or, sometimes, cheaper.

Indulge.

Edited by Moderator: Link broken. Please read forum rules in Introduction, in particular regarding new members posting links and self promoting posts.

Chip
TeaDrinker who happens to Moderate

[kostap]

I have two simple (and cheap) teapots made in similar style (with semi-transparent dots). Bought both of them from the same seller in UK (dirty cheap). Their eBay shop is not impressive (items are not categorized, only one picture in every lot), but they sell some nice inexpensive stuff. For instance:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Ceramic-cup-saucer- ... 4a91236587
or
http://cgi.ebay.com/Tea-pot-ceramic300c ... 4a926a86f9

I think these items good enough for everyday use and close enough to the style shown in the thread.