Description
Ido-gata (well-shaped) Banko-yaki Tenmoku Renshuu Chawan (Black Practice Tea Bowl,) Banko-ware, Japan. This type of tea bowl would be considered a Renshuu Chawan (Practice Tea Bowl) for those just starting out in The Way of Tea, or those just wanting an inexpensive everyday tea bowl. The shape is the easiest in which to whisk matcha, and is also suitable for all seasons. Tenmoku originally referred to Tianmu Mountain temple in Song Dynasty (960-1279 C.E.) where iron-glazed bowls were used for tea, and which were later prized and imitated in Japan. Although they came in colors from yellow to purple to brown to black, the term is now often used in the West to denote a rich glossy black glaze. This bowl has such a rich black glaze and an unglazed foot. Closer inspection of the glaze also reveals layers of chestnut brown, green, dark blue, and camel brown floating in a sky of pitch black. The foot of this bowl is unglazed, and with the artist's stamp (unknown).
H. 2.875"(7.25cm) x Dia. 5"(12.75cm.) Weight 243 grams.
The history of Banko-waki goes back to the mid-1700's, when a wealthy merchant in nearby (to Yokkaichi) Kuwana named Nunami Rozan established his own kiln in the late 1700's to further pursue his passion and studies in The Way of Tea (Cha no Yu). It's said that Rozan was inspired by, and learned from, the pottery of Kyoto pottery giant Ogata Kenzan. Rozan stamped his works "Banko" or "Banko Fuetsu" meaning everlasting or unchanging. So, unlike many Japanese pottery traditions, Banko ware was not named after the place of production, but by a poetic moniker created by the founder. It wasn't until decades later that Banko ware became a production industry creating wares for a larger domestic audience. In the late Edo Period (mid-1800's) when sencha-type green tea became available to the masses, this greatly contributed to the development of Banko ware and to becoming a center for tea pot production, along with Tokoname. It had gone through ups and downs, along with the national economy, over several generations and in the early 1900's, it even became an export producer with more than half of their production exported to the U.S. However WWII saw the destruction of much of the region through Allied bombings, and over 80% of Banko-ware kilns were lost. The region resumed mass production for domestic consumption after the war, and Banko-yaki training and techniques actually spread to several other parts of Japan. There are now "types" of Banko ware in Akita, Fukushima, Tochigi, Kanagawa, and Gifu Prefectures; respectively named Akita-Banko, Nihonmatsu-Banko, Ashikaga-Banko, Hama-Banko, and Mino-Banko after the cities in which they are centered.
Fortunately, artisan-made pottery for tea use has also once again flourished around Yokkaichi and there are several ateliers of expert potters making fine tea ware.