Mystery Teapot- A fun riddle for Asian teaware experts.

[chrl42]

Japan not only did import Yixing teapots but also locally imitated Yixing teapots. Same as Yixing potters imatated Japanese Kyusu using Yixing Zhuni.

Same situation is Shantou potters and Yixing potters (Pan Hu the design originally came from Shantou one). During late-Qing, communications were very common.

The picture shown is certainly not Yixing teapot (wheel-thrown lines are clear) but the shape is very Yixing-alike (very common Yixing Ju Lun Zhu shape popular during Meiji period (late-Qing) in Japan).

[Tead Off]

Not Yixing. Are those stains on the exterior? Can't figure out what they are.
Bizen clay, when it is pure and old, is very good stuff.

[chrl42]

Not Yixing. Are those stains on the exterior? Can't figure out what they are.
Bizen clay, when it is pure and old, is very good stuff.

Very attractive ware and clay. Seems they are (the clay) high in iron content..

Vintage Bizen and other Japanese teawares very popular in China, too. I heard over the half of Japanese vintages are purchased by the Chinese today. I shall treat myself with a old Bizen Kyusu sooner introduce some if you guys have any.

[Tead Off]

Bizen teapot 3.jpg (41.95 KiB) Viewed 733 times

Bizen teapot 6.jpg (34.48 KiB) Viewed 733 times

Bizen teapot 8.jpg (47.08 KiB) Viewed 733 times

Age: 50's-70's?
Great clay. Very rustic. Heavy, not thin walled.

[JBaymore]

The tsuchi aji (clay character.... lit. clay flavor) does not look at all like Bizen clays (there are a couple typically used). Nor does the form of the teapot. And that "glaze" line mentioned is WAY atypical. Bizen is never glazed in any way. Nor is the usually any "slip" of a differrnt clay appiled to the surface.

That surface treatment on the exterior is WAY atypical for Bizen, and if it truly was from back in the 30's........ tradition would have been holding sway even more strongly back then as the Japanese were focusing on kokutai.

I agree on the liklihood of the き and the び or ぴ middle characters. Can't tell the first and last at ALL. (Any better images?) The presence of those two kana pretty much cements that it is Japanese....... or that it was made FOR the Japanese market. The forms seem strongly influenced by Chinese tea works however.

I'm pretty darn familiar with historical and contemporary Japanese wares...... and I don't recognize it either stylistically or from the clay and firing treatment. As Chip said...... Banko or Tokoname come to mind....... but it is not at all in their traditions either.

The crafting in a couple of the images looks a bit "off" on quality (not in a "wabi-sabi" way....... but more like high volume production ware). Like the finish of the inside of the vent hole and the strainer. Which is interesting. Could be "factory produced" kind of wares... during the western industrial revollution influences. During that particular time frame, the quality of craft work in Japan went thru a serious period of decline.

How reputable is this "dealer"?

Stumped for the moment. I'll keep thinking and researching a bit when I have time.

best,

...................john

[tingjunkie]

I'm always blown away with the depth of knowledge on this board! Thanks all. Does my heart good to see that TeaChat is not dead, even though it feels like tumbleweeds have been blowing through sometimes lately!

As far as the reputation of the dealer, I'm not entirely sure. I think he's an American living in Japan for many years who makes his own pottery and frequents local flea markets. Seems honest to the best of his ability, even though he may not be a pinnacle of knowledge.

[chrl42]

Hmm...it does look like Jun Lun Zhu of late-19c~early-20c. But the clay doesn't seem to follow much. Moreover Yixing clay basically is very hard on wheel-thrown unless there are some kaolin added to it.

If it was possible with genuine Yixing clay, there had been many, many thrown on wheels during early-PRC period..because the main goal at that time was to enlarge the quantity.

During the CR, they wanted to make Yixing clay that is enable on wheels..they mixed many clays and filtered in a sieve..Nian Gao Tu was born in that background. But Nian Gao Tu also didn't pass on a wheel, so they just made in moulds like normal after late-70s.

Yixing teapots produced by wheel-throwin' method are with kaolin and other Nen Ni types added...most notably Wang Jin-chuan the potter.

And let's not forget during late-19c~early-20c. Vast amounts of Shantou and Nixingtao (Guangxi province) went to Japan, too. Many are in shape of Yixing teapot.


BTW that was very lovely teapot, Teadoff.

[MarshalN]

This is definitely not a Chinese import but a native Japanese product - the clay is typical of some of the imitation Yixing I've seen (and I think I have one or two in possession), minus the exterior decoration. The shape is julunzhu to imitate Chinese style teaware, but the form and especially the configuration of the yuzamashi and the cups is distinctly Japanese. Export yixing ware looks nothing like this.

We can use a better picture of the chop, top down, no shadows... might help us read better.

A couple things too - I don't think this is glazed, at least it doesn't look that way. Looks to me like how some clays have different colours on the exterior and interior after firing (temperature difference?). Chaozhou pots most clearly display that kind of character. Not glazed, but interior and exterior are different textures/colours.

[hobin]

To me it's an old Bizen, the glaze is actually goma. It doesn't look rough as t's not woodfired. The 1930s as a date makes sense:

"It wasn't until the 1930s that Kaneshige Toyo revived the lost ancient ways and cast the "Momoyama spell" over the twentieth century and up to where we are today"

http://www.e-yakimono.net/guide/html/bizen.html

the noborigama revival started after that.

just my 2 cents!

[paul haigh]

I thought that "goma" referred to one of the ash effects from wood firing. That glaze/slip line is not from wood firing. The spots on the outside are not a natural ash effect- they appear applied (unless something dripped during the firing)

[hobin]

I think you're right. it's definitely artificial goma. I've read somewhere that they used sawdust to re-create that effect

[tingjunkie]

This is definitely not a Chinese import but a native Japanese product - the clay is typical of some of the imitation Yixing I've seen (and I think I have one or two in possession), minus the exterior decoration.

Please post a photo or two of your Japanese imitation Yixing if you can! I've seen ones made from the classic red Tokoname clay, but never any made from some kind of purple/brown clay. I'm very interested.

I'll try to post some better chop photos later.

[JBaymore]

I thought that "goma" referred to one of the ash effects from wood firing. That glaze/slip line is not from wood firing. The spots on the outside are not a natural ash effect- they appear applied (unless something dripped during the firing)

Absolutely correct, Paul.

Goma is the word for "sesame seed", and it is specifically the small yellow-ish speckling that light ash takes on when it lamds on the high iron Bizen body.

best,

..................john

[JBaymore]

I think you're right. it's definitely artificial goma. I've read somewhere that they used sawdust to re-create that effect

Artificial goma is done by lightly sprinkiling seived ash onto the dampened wares before firing. Then it is typically fired in oil or gas kilns. It is a "new comer" technique....... fake wood firing. It is usually very obvious to a potter how it was done.

The photos of the first pot are not great... but that stuff almost looks like "splashes" (wet applications) of some sort of slip/glaze/wash onto the surface on top of another slip/glaze/wash.

best,

...................john

[JBaymore]

A couple things too - I don't think this is glazed, at least it doesn't look that way. Looks to me like how some clays have different colours on the exterior and interior after firing (temperature difference?). Chaozhou pots most clearly display that kind of character. Not glazed, but interior and exterior are different textures/colours.

Let's all make sure that we are all talking about the FIRST teapot .... here..... could get confused.

The original poster mentioned "glaze" ... and I figured he had a better view of it than the pictures.

Notice the BAND on the interior just below the lip. Yes, as you say, the clay color on interiors and exteriors can normally vary, but that stripe of color and texture change seems to imply that some sort of coating (slip glaze, wash) was put on the exterior of the form and then was also overlapping into the top of the inside of the teapot form (which is what I am focusing upon at the moment). That technique is not typical Bizen potting.

Can't tell for sure from the photos... but I don't THINK that band is from the seating of the flange of the lid affecting the clay color there. The color and surface quality seems to match the exterior finish on the teapot. Look at the difference to the surface and texture of the clay lower down.

best,

..................john