BOWLS & TEA CUPS

Beautiful Japanese teaware is essential to the preparation of green tea. We carefully select teaware that are popular in Japan and perfectly suited for the preparation of your green tea.

You will also find hand-made cups and bowls from famous kiln and pottery masters that are exclusively available on IKKYU.

Karatsu Yaki is considered one of the top ceramic producers within the Japanese world of pottery with techniques including a Kick wheel, Climbing kiln, Wooden ash glaze (a glaze technique from Korea mainly made from charcoal) and its bright colors and simplicity.

The variety and style of Karatsu ware multiplied and was traded extensively throughout the country, becoming representative of Japanese ceramics. For example, in western Japan, the word for ceramic ware became “Karatsumono” (Karatsu ware).

There is an old saying in the ranking of tea bowls: “First Ido, second Hagi, third Karatsu”. There are three famous pottery production sites in Japan. Firstly, Ido yaki is produced in Hagi, Yamaguchi. Secondly, Raku yaki is produced in Kyoto. Karatsu yaki is ranked third.) Karatsu Yaki has been loved by many masters of tea ceremony since ancient times and there are many examples of famous Karatsu teabowls in the tea ceremony.

During the Edo period, Takatori-Yaki was developed under the auspice of Kuroda clan. Also, it received advice regarding the pottery techniques from Kobori Enshu, a noble Japanese Sado artist, who picked Takatori kiln as one of seven his favorite kilns. Its philosophical guidelines focus on elegant simplicity. Its color diversity stands out within the Japanese pottery world. Red, brown, green, white: all of them are based on the beauty of Japanese nature.

What makes Takatori-Yaki special is its use of seven different kinds of color glazes. Moreover, it produces a high note as if it was porcelain when flicking one’s fingers at it. This is because Takatori-Yaki is made very thin although it has layers of glazes.