This lovely white Hagi chawan rests firmly on a wari kodai or “split foot.” The crackled milky glaze varies in consistency across the curves and contours of the bowl with some areas tending towards a faint brown, adding an interesting dimension to the landscape.

The creator of this piece Matsuura Mugen (1944 - ) has spent his life in the pursuit of perfecting the art of Hagi...

Raised, undulating ridges on a field of cobalt blue highlighted with white slip and bronze flecks around the rim, this piece conjures images of the deep and stormy sea or possibly of the vast swirling cosmos...

Looking as though it were cast from molten rock, this chawan has a very earthy and primal feel to it. The rich clay shows through in places hinting of ochre, yellow, and even a subtle metallic blue—cleverly mimicking the way mineral formations appear in nature...

Occasionally as I’m browsing through the temple markets of Kyoto or perusing backstreets tea-ware shops, an attractive piece will catch my eye for no particular reason. When this happens, I typically buy it immediately without hesitation, trusting that I will be able to decipher the Chinese script and give it proper attribution through the course of my research. In this case, I was only able to make it half-way there...

This impressive han-tsutsu Shino chawan was made by the late 13th generation Mino potter Kato Seizo (1930-1979, Kagekiyo). Kato’s works are well-regarded throughout Japan and he has won a number of honors and awards over the course of his career as an artist. Not surprisingly, he is equally appreciated abroad and by foreign experts of Japanese pottery...

This brilliant Tenmoku chawan displays gold and flaxen hues interspersed with dark ash glaze. The piece rests upon an unglazed clay pedestal showing the iron-rich clay the bowl is formed from.

Shodai-ware has a long and storied history stretching back as far as the Nara (710 - 794) and Heian (794 - 1192 ) periods...

A very elegant and mature tsutsu style chawan created by Ito Tozan III (1900-1970), third generation of the Ito Tozan line of potters. Tozan, who at one time worked in the kiln of Hamada Shoji, learned pottery from his father Ito Tozan II (1871-1937) and his grandfather Ito Tozan I (1846-1920) from a very young age...

This magnificent Shino-yaki chawan, done in a rediscovered Momoyama period style, came from the kilns of one of Japan’s most celebrated and talented potters.

Arakawa Toyozo (1894 - 1985), designated in 1955 as one of but a handful of National Living Treasures, is best known for rediscovering lost techniques of pottery from the Momoyama and early Edo periods...

This chawan was fired in the kilns of one of Kyoto’s best known raku-yaki potters, Sasaki Shoraku III (1944-). The Shoraku line began when the grandfather of the current potter established a kiln near the famous Kiyomizu temple, nestled at the foot of the eastern mountains in Kyoto. In 1945, the kiln was moved to Kameoka near the Yada shrine where it remains today.

Raku teabowls are made by hand, without the use of a potter's wheel...

A dazzling Hagi-ware bowl with cherry petal and earthen tones made by one of Japan's great potters. The 14th potter of the Sakakura line of potters Sakakura Shinbei XIV (1917-1975) was designated an important human cultural treasure of Yamaguchi prefecture in 1972...

A captivating bowl created by Kyoto potter Kawai Zuiho, most likely in the early 70’s. This bowl features a red undercoat which is visible in places through the greenish overglaze. The effect is quite striking and sure to attract the eye. With a convenient indent on the side, this bowl fits comfortably in the hand.

Kyo-Yaki is high-fired ceramic and pottery that centers around the Higashiyama district of Kyoto...

A charming akaraku chawan done by third generation potter Kato Ryusei. This piece was fired at the Akahiko Kama which has produced pottery in Aichi prefecture since 1956 and who have the distinction of being commissioned not only by the Showa Emperor and Empress but also by the later Heisei Emperor.

With a soft luminance and subtle charm, this piece would be an valued addition to the collection of any budding tea practitioner...

A beautiful Hagi-yaki chawan done by well-known artist Kaneda Keien (1949-). Keien is an 8th generation potter who has been producing works for over 40 years and is the winner of several awards for excellence. A distinctive feature of his works is that they utilize an iron-rich soil collected on the island of Mishima in the Sea of Japan...

This chawan was fired in the kilns of one of Kyoto’s best known raku-yaki potters, Sasaki Shoraku III (1944-). The Shoraku line began when the grandfather of the current potter established a kiln near the famous Kiyomizu temple, nestled at the foot of the eastern mountains in Kyoto. In 1945, the kiln was moved to Kameoka near the Yada shrine where it remains today.

Raku teabowls are made by hand, without the use of a potter's wheel. In the process of shaping the bowls, potters ha...

A mature work by an artist who’s career as a potter has spanned over 55 years. This beautiful white Hagi bowl by Takenouchi Akihiro (1937-) displays a quiet elegance that sets the mind at ease.

Takenouchi is a member of the Japan Arts and Crafts Association and the winner of various prizes and awards for pieces he produced at the Sousou kiln which he established in 1967.

The piece is 4.5 inches in diameter (11.5cm) and stands 3.7 inches tall (9.5cm) and comes with a ...

A captivating piece described on the box as “aka e sakana bun” which can be loosely translated as, Depiction of Fish with Red Overglaze. Okuda (1920-1999) was a student of both Hamada Shoji and Kawaii Kanjiro and his kiln was visited by a number of well-known artists including the likes of Bernard Leach. A distinctive style following the mingei or, “folk craft,” movement of the mid-20th century, this piece is a delight for the eyes and functional in the hand.

The bowl is 4.7...

An original piece by the second in the line of Choraku potters. This bowl is stamped twice on the side and once on the pedestal with the mark of Ogawa Choraku II (1912-1991).

The Choraku line began when a student of Kichizaemon XI (Keinyu) and Kichizaemon XII (Konyu) opened an independent kiln in Kyoto in 1904. The line was officially given the name Choraku in 1906 by Choyuken, the head of a very influential tea ceremony association. Red Raku chawan are a favorite of tea enthusiast...

This attractive e-Shino bowl (“e†meaning picture) bears a pine-needle motif on the front surrounded by fields of dazzling ochre and white.

Fired in the kilns of Kato Kageaki (1899-1972), this Shino bowl is from one of the oldest traditions in Japanese pottery. Kageyaki was the 12th generation of Mino potters known for their distinctive styles of Shino and Oribe pottery. He was a great potter in his own right who was designated as a Human Intangible Cultural Treasure...