Official/Different Yixing Show Off Topic!

[Alex]

Wow where's that from? Love the look of the clay!

[kyarazen]

revisiting this video again : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zo7qclDGH9g

excellent lecture on hui meng chen

a quick summary for non chinese listeners

1) it is common that artisans do not work singly, but if they are famous enough they would set up workshops with many helpers and potters, such as yang peng nian, zhao song ting, cheng shou fu, wu de sheng, maoshun sheng etc etc. a lot of "mansheng pots" are not made by chen mansheng himself but his siblings and relatives

2) during end of Ming dynasty, the writings of Zhou Gao Qi, perhaps mengchen was just a "commercialized" branding etc, that was why meng chen's name did not make it into Zhou's records

3) For pots with mengchen seals, if the pot is superbly made, ultra fine workmanship (to which possibly the seal is carved with a steel knife), these pots have a good chance to be personally made by meng chen himself. if the workmanship is rougher, and seals are wood stamped, it could just be "commercialized pots"

4) mengchen probably existed at the end of Wanli, ming dynasty. hui yi gong probably existed around kangxi, yung chen. hui yi gong may not be the son of meng chen unless mengchen had a son when he was really really old.

5) there was probably a huge mengchen workshop, just to suit the kong fu cha needs of people

6) a lot of mengchen pots were exported all over the world. gongfu cha in historical research, did not appear during end of ming, there were no beautiful and fine gongfu cha sized teapots during mengchen time. they only appeared during hui yi gong's era onwards

[William]

revisiting this video again : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zo7qclDGH9g

excellent lecture on hui meng chen

a quick summary for non chinese listeners

1) it is common that artisans do not work singly, but if they are famous enough they would set up workshops with many helpers and potters, such as yang peng nian, zhao song ting, cheng shou fu, wu de sheng, maoshun sheng etc etc. a lot of "mansheng pots" are not made by chen mansheng himself but his siblings and relatives

2) during end of Ming dynasty, the writings of Zhou Gao Qi, perhaps mengchen was just a "commercialized" branding etc, that was why meng chen's name did not make it into Zhou's records

3) For pots with mengchen seals, if the pot is superbly made, ultra fine workmanship (to which possibly the seal is carved with a steel knife), these pots have a good chance to be personally made by meng chen himself. if the workmanship is rougher, and seals are wood stamped, it could just be "commercialized pots"

4) mengchen probably existed at the end of Wanli, ming dynasty. hui yi gong probably existed around kangxi, yung chen. hui yi gong may not be the son of meng chen unless mengchen had a son when he was really really old.

5) there was probably a huge mengchen workshop, just to suit the kong fu cha needs of people

6) a lot of mengchen pots were exported all over the world. gongfu cha in historical research, did not appear during end of ming, there were no beautiful and fine gongfu cha sized teapots during mengchen time. they only appeared during hui yi gong's era onwards

Really interesting KZ! Thanks for the summary!

[LouPepe]

Wow where's that from? Love the look of the clay!

Looks and feels like really nice modern zhuni . Good'ole JTS. I just happened to check their pots at the right time. Haven't brewed in it yet but the Qing Hui Ni is doing marvelous things with my Yancha. I'm particularly happy as my plan is for this to be my last yixing purchase. Lots of lovely ceramics coming out of taiwan and Northern Europe I want to stock up on a bit.

[NateHevens]

I really need to get my own yixing pot. I haven't found an affordable one, yet, and I haven't been sure since I'm largely a green tea drinker right now (I'll be jumping into oolongs once I finish much of my green tea, although that won't be any time soon... I have a lot) and I haven't read much about green tea in yixings.

On a separate note, I thought y'all would find this amusing: I work for Teavana, and I happen to know that they have plans to eventually start selling "yixing" pots... that'll be... interesting...

[BW85]

I really need to get my own yixing pot. I haven't found an affordable one, yet, and I haven't been sure since I'm largely a green tea drinker right now (I'll be jumping into oolongs once I finish much of my green tea, although that won't be any time soon... I have a lot) and I haven't read much about green tea in yixings.

On a separate note, I thought y'all would find this amusing: I work for Teavana, and I happen to know that they have plans to eventually start sells "yixing" pots... that'll be... interesting...

Most people don't like yixing clay for green tea, but personally I like it. I guess it depends on the type of green tea and how you brew.

Re: teavana selling yixing... I would wager that they wouldn't actually be yixing clay teopots, but some cheaper clay that is close enough to fool the uneducated, and over priced for what they are, just like their teas

[NateHevens]

Most people don't like yixing clay for green tea, but personally I like it. I guess it depends on the type of green tea and how you brew.

Huh. I'll have to do research. I've been heavy into Japanese greens, but I have some Chinese greens I adore. I keep finding other Chinese greens I want to try, but I have to remind myself that a)I have to drink through the tea I already have, and b) I really want to start on the world of Oolongs...

Gah! So much tea! So little money! So little time!

Re: teavana selling yixing... I would wager that they wouldn't actually be yixing clay teopots, but some cheaper clay that is close enough to fool the uneducated, and over priced for what they are, just like their teas

[heliospace]

Been a while since I've shared something. Here's a beauty from the collection, either Qianlong or Daoguang period. 150ml paired with liu bao.

[loinguyen]

Been a while since I've shared something. Here's a beauty from the collection, either Qianlong or Daoguang period. 150ml paired with liu bao.

It was made in early 20th.

[heliospace]

It was made in early 20th.

What amazes me about studying purple clay is how many different opinions one single pot can get. You are the first one to offer the early 20th century opinion.

Perhaps seeing the lid construction along with the bottom will persuade you otherwise... So I took photos of those for you.




Either way, it would be nice to read what you see that leads you to thinking it is early 20th century and I can relay this back to some other experts to see if they may see what you are seeing in it. Thank you!

[William]

You are not posting the photos that really matters (i.e. inside the pot)!

[heliospace]

You are not posting the photos that really matters (i.e. inside the pot)!

Correct. Why would I? I represented it for what it is. Not what someone guesses it is from the outside. Trust me when I say that the seal, the lid, and the up close of the clay likely made loinguyen rethink his position on it. Cheers.

[TadpoleJaxn]

Clay type - possibly duan ni
Capacity - approximately 120 ml
When made - no idea!
Thickness - moderate to thick
Pour time - 12 seconds while packed with pu leaves
Tea pairing - Shou pu erh
Pot qualities - I brewed a early 2000s menghai shou in this little pot and I was surprisingly taken aback at the improvement in both taste and smoothness! You wouldn't believe it but as I was searching my local consignment store for pottery (as is my wont to do in the mornings after I drink a small pot of assam, meditate and yoga around a little) I found this little guy sitting precariously on the top shelf with the new stuff I almost jumped out of my pants, I'd been thinking about yixing, and I couldn't believe this fell in my lap for 3.99 usd. So what do you friendly tea folks think about this pot? I admit I know little of yixing, and this could be a cheaper clay, but as I said earlier, it noticeably improves shou to my taste and has, over the months, taken a shine, a patina and deepened the flavour of the shou along with it. Also, if anyone knows what the inscription says, I would be overjoyed By the way, this is my first post as a new member, so hello, I went through hell to get these pics uploaded, converting pixel size and whatnot.
Oh, one last thing, I believe it was never used, but has a little age on it, as there was pottery dust in the inside of the pot, as well as a cobweb or two! While cleaning in boiling water and seasoning, the yellowish colour didn't change or lighten, which makes me think that it wasn't dyed, but I'll leave that guess to wiser eyes, as well as the quality of it. Nonetheless, it was a favourable mood God was in as he twisted the strings of fate that brought us together.

[Tead Off]

You are not posting the photos that really matters (i.e. inside the pot)!

Correct. Why would I? I represented it for what it is. Not what someone guesses it is from the outside. Trust me when I say that the seal, the lid, and the up close of the clay likely made loinguyen rethink his position on it. Cheers.

No one wants to be wrong about their purchases, but you are not giving anyone a fair chance to evaluate the pot that you posted. Trust is not the issue, visual examination, is the issue. Taking anyone's word is often proven to be a bit foolish, especially in this field, and especially through photos. Everyone is here to learn, right?

[loinguyen]

revisiting this video again : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zo7qclDGH9g

excellent lecture on hui meng chen

a quick summary for non chinese listeners

1) it is common that artisans do not work singly, but if they are famous enough they would set up workshops with many helpers and potters, such as yang peng nian, zhao song ting, cheng shou fu, wu de sheng, maoshun sheng etc etc. a lot of "mansheng pots" are not made by chen mansheng himself but his siblings and relatives

2) during end of Ming dynasty, the writings of Zhou Gao Qi, perhaps mengchen was just a "commercialized" branding etc, that was why meng chen's name did not make it into Zhou's records

3) For pots with mengchen seals, if the pot is superbly made, ultra fine workmanship (to which possibly the seal is carved with a steel knife), these pots have a good chance to be personally made by meng chen himself. if the workmanship is rougher, and seals are wood stamped, it could just be "commercialized pots"

4) mengchen probably existed at the end of Wanli, ming dynasty. hui yi gong probably existed around kangxi, yung chen. hui yi gong may not be the son of meng chen unless mengchen had a son when he was really really old.

5) there was probably a huge mengchen workshop, just to suit the kong fu cha needs of people

6) a lot of mengchen pots were exported all over the world. gongfu cha in historical research, did not appear during end of ming, there were no beautiful and fine gongfu cha sized teapots during mengchen time. they only appeared during hui yi gong's era onwards

I do not agree with this:
"3) For pots with mengchen seals, if the pot is superbly made, ultra fine workmanship (to which possibly the seal is carved with a steel knife), these pots have a good chance to be personally made by meng chen himself. if the workmanship is rougher, and seals are wood stamped, it could just be "commercialized pots" "

And which of them is oldest !