TEA BOWL (Yuteki Tenmoku), stoneware with "oil spots" and iridescent luster on tenmoku glaze

Cultural Property National Treasure
Date1 Southern Song dynasty
Date2 12th-13th century
Kiln Jian ware
Height (cm) 7.5
Mouth Diameter (cm) 12.2
Weight (g) 349
Collection The ATAKA Collection
Credit Line The Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka (gift of SUMITOMO Group, the ATAKA Collection), photograph by 〓(Please credit the name of the photographer which is indicated at the bottom left of each image)
Accession No. 00559
Description The term tenmoku, which refers to black-glazed tea bowls in general, is said to have been derived from Mount Tianmu in northern Zhejiang Province. Yuteki (oil-spots) tenmoku tea bowls, however, were produced at the Jian kilns in Fujian Province and they are also known as Jianzhan. The name yuteki describes the gold, silver and blue iridescent spots resembling the oil drops floating on the surface of the water. They are the result of crystallization of the iron contained in the glaze. The gold band covering the mouth rim is not only for reinforcing the mouth rim but also for visual attraction. This work was brought into Japan during the Kamakura period (1185-1333) and owned by kanpaku or imperial regent Toyotomi Hidetsugu (1568-1595), which was later handed down through the Nishihonganji temple, the Mitsui Family of Kyoto and the Sakai Family of Wakasa Province (present-day Fukui Prefecture). Three lacquer trays from the Southern Song dynasty accompany this bowl.
URL for TIFF images* https://1drv.ms/u/s!AiGiuwfOF8uugid-N0Bhxf8lKhHU?e=a3bQS5

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