Kyo-yaki Yuteki Tenmoku Chawan with Fukurin

This stunning Kyo-yaki tenmoku chawan (matcha bowl) is made in the classic tenmoku shape and features a silver rim and an entrancing yuteki glaze with hints of blue. The shape is slightly wider and flatter than some classic tenmoku, and has a very pronounced finger groove below the rim along with a very conical lower section. The silver metal rim cover (ginrin - 銀輪) is a feature found on many historical tenmoku chawan which strengthens the rim and protects from chips. Yuteki (油滴 - oil-spot) is one of the most popular style of tenmoku glazes, consisting of silvery spots of iron crystals suspended on a blue or black backdrop, like oil on water.

The original tenmoku chawan were brought from Song Dynasty China to Japan along with powdered tea culture in the 13th century. Today, they are the most formal of chawan and are used in the tea ceremony on top of lacquer stands when serving tea to VIPs and nobles or when making tea offerings to shrines or the Buddha.

While most Tenmoku glazes are a simple black, occasionally the glaze recipe and the conditions in the kiln are just right, causing the ash in the glaze to separate from the iron in a way that produces beautiful metallic effects, such as the one seen on this cup, called 'yuteki', meaning 'oil-spot'.

This chawan was made by Tanaka Kōsen (田中香泉).