Isahaya Town
Isahaya Town, located in Kitakamigun, Nagasaki Prefecture, has a population of over 22,000 and is an important location for the Nagasaki-bound and Sasebo-bound lines. In the old days, it was written as Isahaya, and was first the territory of the Arima clan of Minamikourai, and then the fief of the Saigo clan, but it was annexed by the Ryuzoji clan and became their territory, and then it came under the control of the Nabeshima clan. The lineage of the Isahaya clan is as follows.
Chausuyama Pottery
There is a folk tale that the Chausuyama Pottery, also known as the Isahaya Kamayama Pottery, was started by Koreans who accompanied the village headman Ryuzoji Shichiro Sakumon Ieharu, who returned from the Korean campaign during the Keicho period (1596-1615). Although it is unclear how many there were at the time, the fact that Koreans lived in Isahaya is still evident in the name of the town, Koraikoji. The Kamayama pottery district is located 30 chō (approx. 109 meters) from Isahaya Station, close to the main Isahaya Station and the Nishi-no-Sato area, which is close to the current prison.
From the beginning, the area was used only for the production of earthenware pots and mortars, and the pottery was made in the ruins of the castle called Isahaya Takajo, which is located next to the factory. Nishigo was the farm land of the Saigo clan, and the lord of the castle, Saigo Tadamasa, held 1,000 cho of land and was one of the warlords who exerted his power in this region.
Siege of Isa-Haya Castle
In June of the fourth year of the Tensho era (1576), Ryuzoji Takanobu attacked Isa-Haya Castle, led by Ureshino Echigo no Kami Michibon (who was paid 500 cho), Awaji no Kami Michiyoshi (who was paid 300 cho), Yamato no Kami Michiharu (who was paid 160 chō), Yoshida Saemon Dayu Iemune (310 chō), and others, including Takatsuki Shima no Kami Morisada and Tokushima Sakon no Jo, advanced on Isahaya. They fought at Nanaura against the castle lord Saigo Iwami no Kami Sumitaka, and after being defeated, the Isahaya Castle came under siege by the Ryuzoji forces. Meanwhile, Takayoshi’s separate forces from Hirado, Matsuura, Imari, Arita and Goto attacked Omura, and while the Omura forces were defending themselves in Kaino Castle, Takayoshi’s separate forces from Hirado, Matsuura, Imari, Arita and Goto attacked Omura, and while the Omura forces were defending themselves in Kaino Castle, Takayoshi’s separate forces from Hirado, Matsuura, Imari, Arita and Goto attacked Omura, and while the Omura forces were defending themselves in Kaino Castle, Takayoshi’s separate forces from Hirado, Matsuura, Imari, Arita and Goto attacked Omura, and while the Omura forces were defending themselves in Kaino Castle, Takayoshi’s separate forces from Hirado, Matsuura, Imari, Arita and Goto attacked Omura, and while the Omura forces were defending themselves in Kaino Castle, Takayoshi’s separate forces from
In 1577, Ryuzoji Takanobu raised a large army to attack Saigo Jun’ya again, and with the help of Ogawa Musashi no Kami Nobutoshi, Natori Samusuke Iekage, Takagi Samusuke Morifusa, Uchida Ki no Kami Nobukata, Yokodake Hyogo no Kami Iemoto, Baba Hizen no Kami Chinshu, and the commanders of the Omura and Hirado camps , Kusano, and Tsuruta, and after defeating Saigo Gennan, they made a peace agreement with Fukahori Uesuke Sumikata, and made Junsho, the second son of Junnao, the son-in-law of Takayoshi, and from then on, they came under the control of the Ryuzoji clan.
Isahaya territory
When Hideyoshi went west in 1587, the domain was taken over by the Ryuzoji clan because Naganori Shigenobu did not go out to greet him. From then on, the domain was transferred to Minamikata, and Isahaya became the fief of Takayuki, the grandson of Hideyoshi’s cousin, Magoroku. , his son Ukon Masanobu Takayoshi changed his family name to Isahaya, and in addition to the whole of Kitakamigun (excluding Fuka and Koga villages), he also ruled over Kikitsu and Yagami villages in Nishisonogi-gun, and , and it is said that he was reputed to have a harvest of 22,500 koku, although in fact he was said to have a harvest of 10,000 koku.
Kama-yama Changes in the business
The raw material for Chausuyama pottery is the brown clay of the Kurimen area, and it is said that the glaze is made from local soil and oak ash from Saigo. Originally, it was a direct descendant of the Korean people, but in the latter years it came under the control of the Isahaya domain lord, and the domain retainer Sakaguchi Genkomon became its manager. From around the 5th year of the Tempo era (1835), the business was expanded further, and in the Ansei era (1855-1860), water was supplied by the Dutch. From around 1835, the business was expanded further, and during the Ansei era (1855-1860), water was supplied to the Dutch and a great profit was made, but when the domain lord was Kazutaka, it was handed over to individuals, and the Sakaguchi family managed it for generations.
In the second year of Meiji In the second year of Meiji, the business became increasingly prosperous, and in the tenth year of Meiji, many products were transported to Higo, but due to the damage caused by the Satsuma Rebellion, many of the goods were destroyed, and the business never recovered. At that time, the products were mainly jars and pots, but there were also many other types, such as mortar and flower pots.
Earthenware Pipes Kabushiki Kaisha
In around 1897, the former Diet member Yoshino Kichinosuke became the leader of the company, and established the Isahaya Pottery Earthenware Pipe Manufacturing Kabushiki Kaisha with a capital of 100,000 yen, greatly expanding the scale of the company.
Uchida Isaemon
After a few years, one of the shareholders, Uchida Isaemon, took over all the company’s operations and ran it privately, focusing on the production of clay pipes for use in railways and irrigation , but the spread of his government’s austerity policies has generally led to a halt in civil engineering projects and land reclamation, and the company has been in a very poor state of affairs recently.
(The current factory owner, Ushio, is Isao’s son.)
Hashi Noo
Hashi Noo is a village of 170 houses in the Kurimen area of Oguri Village in Kitakamigun, located in the mountains about 2 ri west of Isahaya Station, at the foot of Mount Yatendake. has been named Toshinoo since ancient times, so it was thought that there must be pottery-making ruins here, and when the principal of Toshinoo Elementary School, Harukichi Matsuo, and others were searching for them, they were first confirmed by Kyoichi Kanehara, an old potter from Takeo Town, on October 24th, 1933.
Toshinoo Nono Old Kiln
The kiln site that was discovered is a 15-ken long, 7-shaku long climbing kiln in a grove of oak trees (owned by the Oguri Village Mayor Yamaguchi Iwamatsu) at the end of a path in Nakadori. However the site is covered in a thick layer of old leaves, and there are hardly any kiln tools to be seen, but in the actual excavated remains, there are tea bowls with gold-brown glazes in the old Karatsu style, yellow Seto ware, and Tenmoku ware, as well as tea bowls with tortoiseshell glazes, and small plates from Enpen and Kuben.
There are also mouths, pots, and large plates over 24 cm in diameter were also produced. All of these were unglazed, and some of the bowls and small plates had a crescent-shaped hole in the center of the foot. The most unusual of these were the mortar bowls, which were glazed in black tea on the outside. the clay is brown in some cases, but in general, many of them are similar to gray stoneware, and there is a theory that the style of production belongs to a slightly later period than the Keicho era.
Doubts about the founder of the Hashi-no-o kiln
The Kurimata region is rich in clay, and even agricultural products are called Hashi-no-o rice and are of good quality. However there is a theory that the clay was first discovered by Koreans who accompanied the local lord, Ieharu, when he returned from the Korean campaign, but if you study the geography of the area, it is worth considering that it is only one ri from here to the coast of Kounoura.
Therefore it is not unreasonable to consider that a group of Koreans, having been shipwrecked and drifting about, may have landed at Kounoura and then infiltrated into this land of Shinoo. However, the founding of this Tozan pottery was of course due to the patronage of the local lord, Isahaya.
Seko Sarayama
Seko Sarayama is a village in Yagami-mura, two ri from the present-day town of Kikitsu in Nishisonogi-gun, and is located in the mountains about 5 or 6 ri east of Yagami-juku. is a sacred place where the Kannon (Goddess of Mercy) is enshrined, and it is said that the temple was founded by the priest Kukai (also known as Kobo Daishi) in ancient times. The exact date of the founding of the temple on this site is unknown, but it is said to have been around the time of the An’ei era (1772-1781) or the Tenmei era (1781-1789).
Fujimoto Nokichi
After that, it was abolished for a time, but the lord of Isahaya ordered the local influential figure Fujimoto Nokichi to restore it, and Nokichi worked hard and became the reviver of Seko ware. he passed away during the Bunsei era (1818-1831), and his son Isuke and grandson Ichijiro took over the family business in succession, with the great-grandson Sasakazu currently living in Taipei.
Originally Seko pottery was originally encouraged by the Isahaya domain lord in order to produce daily utensils for the territory, and as a result, it is said that the amount of production was very small. Until around the beginning of the Meiji era, the old kilns were still in existence, and the village headman during the feudal era recorded them in the land registry as Jizara-yama, but when the land tax was revised in 1876, the land was measured and the old kilns were torn down, and the land is now completely used for farming.
Seko’s old kiln products
The products were made using low-grade Amakusa stone as the main ingredient, and were unglazed, low-quality porcelain. The types of ware produced included tableware, tea bowls, and flower vases for use in Shinto and Buddhist rituals.
Seko’s Ruri-yu (lapis lazuli glaze)
Perhaps due to the fact that the local geology is not particularly pure, many pieces were produced using a variety of dark lapis lazuli glazes made with Kezu pigments. In particular In particular, a pair of sake bottles, each about 30 cm in height, dedicated to the Fugen Bosatsu (Samantabhadra) enshrined on Mt. Fugen in this area, were dedicated by Nokichi in the Kansei era (1789-1801). They are decorated with phoenixes in pure gold on a medium-thickness blue-green glaze, and the name “Fujimoto Nokichi” is inscribed on the reverse. it seems that only the gold decoration on the lid was made in Arita or Mikawachi.
Yagami Village
The present Kawa, which was once a major pottery-producing area, is a village in Yagami, Nishi-Saga Prefecture. Originally, the Yagami area was originally a fief of the Yagami Hoki no Kami under the rule of Arima Sengan of Shimabara, and he owned 200 cho of land, but when it came to Ryuzoji Takanobu, it finally became the domain of the Isahaya clan, and it was designated as a 200 koku fief in the Yagami domain. This place is two ri from Kikitsu Station and three ri from Nagasaki City, but it has been a key area for guarding the Nagasaki batteries since ancient times.
Gen River
From the Kikitsu area, it is about half a ri from the entrance to the Yagami Inn, Hirama, and then you turn right and enter the mountains. At an altitude of 1,673 meters above sea level, you will find the quiet farming village of Genkawa, with its 140 houses. is surrounded by mountains on all sides, but it was like a key port in the Genkai region, and at the time, guards were posted to protect the Nagasaki Kaido, so even now, the names of small villages such as Kurokawauchi remain.
In the first place Kawaya was opened by Koreans who had come with Arima Harunobu, the lord of the Shimabara Castle during the Korean campaign, but it was closed down afterwards. It was reopened once during the Kan’ei era (1624-1645), and then again during the Keian era (1648-1652) by Tanaka Riemon of this area was revived by Tanaka Rikomon, but the kiln was closed down again after a short time. There are various theories as to why this happened. there is still much scope for research into the above matters.
The Arima and the theory of the arrival of Koreans
At the time of the Korean campaign, this area was under the control of the Nabeshima clan, and the first generation of the Isahaya clan, Ryuzoji Ieharu, was the lord of the area. Therefore, it is possible that the theory that Koreans accompanied the Arima clan to this area is correct. at the time of the war, while the various lords in Hizen, such as Karatsu, Saga, Hirado and Omura, all brought back many Koreans, the Arima clan of Shimabara alone seems to have done nothing of the sort. Considering the geographical relationship, compared to the aforementioned territories considering the fact that it would have required a very roundabout route to reach the landing site, it becomes clear that there were not many Koreans who came to the Shimabara Peninsula, so it would be more appropriate to assume that they disembarked at the various places they stopped at along the way, even if they had boarded the ship as cargo. Similarly there were also a number of Koreans who landed in Goto, the territory of Goto Junritsu, and it is said that, as the remains of pottery making in this area, there are no other examples of Japanese people firing tiles.
The confusion of the history of the The confusion of the history of the Genkawa kilns
Originally, the origins of the Genkawa ware are a matter of various legends and other stories, and there is a sense that researchers are left wandering in the fog because of the lack of accurate historical records. the pottery produced is of such outstanding quality, that pottery enthusiasts want to know its history, and some potters from other areas use it as a way to advertise their own work, and there is a sense that they are trying to link it to the pottery techniques of this area, which only adds to the confusion. Of course as an author, I have tried to integrate various different theories and write about them in a rational way, but in the end, I can only wait for the accurate examination of experts in the future. It is thought that the beauty of the Genkawa ware was not demonstrated during the opening of the kilns mentioned above, but rather in the works of the Korean immigrant Sanghwan in later generations.
Genkai Drifting ships in the Genkai Sea
From the Wakamatsu area on the northern coast of Tsukushi in those days, there were often Chinese drifters who drifted to the various ports of Hizen, which faced Tsuyazaki and the Genkai Sea. Also, at that time, there were many black ships from England, Italy, etc., which anchored off the coast of Japan, claiming a lack of drinking water. Among them there were Koreans and Chinese who drifted ashore in the deep inland sea and planned to settle there, and of course they had plans to start trading, but the shogunate viewed this as a nuisance and conducted a thorough investigation, and it was common for the drifters to be caught and sent back.
Therefore there are those who believe that the Koreans who drifted ashore at Tachibana Bay and landed on the Makishima Peninsula may have made their way to the Gen River via the Yagami area from the Oedo area. is different from the theory that the Koreans landed from Funatsu or Shimokamabe, and it seems that they forgot about the special security zone called Yagami, so it is something that must be considered carefully.
escort Koreans
who were passing through this area on their way to Nagasaki by land were sometimes seen being escorted, and many of them were made to spend the night in this Yagami area. They were transported on horseback, with a long-bearded man smoking a pipe on the saddle holding the reins, while the grooms rode on horseback behind. after being interrogated at the Nagasaki Magistrate’s Office, they were transported to the Tsushima residence of the Tsushima clan, and then repatriated to Busan by boat from Genkai. How the group of Korean San Kuhan managed to infiltrate the vicinity of this security zone is unknown, but it is said that they descended the mountain path behind them and crossed the river.
San The group of Sankhan
It is unclear whether this group of people fled their home country because they had broken the national ban, or whether they were specifically planning to immigrate to our country, but the number of people who landed in the Omura Bay area of the Korean Peninsula and climbed up into the mountains were all thirteen people in total, and after descending the Shiraki Pass on the back of the Gen River and reaching this mountainous area, the locals discussed the matter and decided that since this group had come with the aim of making pottery, they must surely be people with considerable skilled, and without further ado, they reported to the lord of Isahaya, and having obtained his permission, they began to open a kiln here, which should be estimated to be around the year 1700 (Genroku 13).
The kiln of Oniki kiln
In time, they were able to communicate in Japanese, albeit in a halting way, and it became clear that the young man in the group called Sankhan was the master potter. they searched the mountains of their home every day, testing various clays, and one day they discovered clay with a reddish-brown color in the bushes of a place called Saiki, and were very happy. They built a pottery kiln there and produced interesting pottery.
In this way the old family of this area, Miura, became the owner of the kiln, and through the help of a Chinese resident in Nagasaki, he was able to purchase the various materials needed for pottery making. After a lot of trial and error, he was able to produce beautiful pottery. Miura made plans to sell his wares in Nagasaki and beyond, but before he could do so, he presented some of his wares to the lord of the domain, Iwashiro, and received great praise.
The production of The production of Genkawa ware was limited
However, throughout the period of the han system, the production of such rare masterpieces in large numbers would have damaged their value, and it was especially not allowed to export them to other countries. difficulties, they applied again to the lord of the village, and, while strictly observing the secrecy of the manufacturing method, limited the number of pieces produced to the lord’s own use, and thus controlled overproduction. The reason why there are so few pieces of this ware that still exist today is that there were no other superior pieces.
In the years that followed As the months passed, the progress of the Genkawa ware was remarkable, and the group of potters grew closer and closer to the local people, who came to regard them as their own. If this If the harmony between the two sides had continued without incident, the research of the Sankhuan would have progressed even further, and they would have produced many more masterpieces, but due to the unexpected occurrence of an incident, the Genkawa ware was finally brought to its complete destruction.
Tanaka Muneyoshi
There was a man named Muneyoshi Tanaka, a deeply compassionate individual who became a teacher at a temple elementary school, who was the descendant of a samurai who had drifted to Genkawa and lived in hiding after being defeated in the Shimabara Rebellion. (One (According to one theory, Sōetsu was the owner of a pottery kiln in this old family with considerable wealth.) And his daughter, called “A Certain Lady”, was not only beautiful, but also a kind-hearted woman, so there were not a few young men in the village who secretly pined for her.
Sankhuan and the young lady
Sōetsu was searching for a good son-in-law, and although he himself had been a great believer in Kannon since he was a child, Sanghwan was also a devotee of the Buddha, and he was also a man of good character and exceptional talent in the field of ceramics, so he thought that even though he was Korean, he would make a good husband for his daughter, and he came to love Sanghwan even more. whether or not Sōetsu knew what was in his heart, the daughter and Sankhan eventually formed a deep bond, and in the end they would talk to each other without regard for the separation between Korea and Japan, even while hiding from other people’s eyes. So, although Sōetsu was not aware of it, the young people of the village soon found out about it, and some of them even became envious and started to question him about it.
The a fierce struggle
There was a man called Nanokichi in the local farming community who had been secretly plotting to marry Soetsu’s daughter. Recently, he had heard a strange rumor about Sankhan and was secretly resenting him, when, in the middle of the last month of the year, in the middle of a heavy snowfall, on his way home from an errand, he unexpectedly met Sankhan. At this time it is unclear what words were exchanged, but on the way the two men came to blows, and Shichinojiki attacked with the pole he was carrying, while Sankhan crossed swords with a small knife he used for his job, and the younger man jumped in and snatched the pole from Shichinojiki.
The tragedy of Ozaki tragedy
On this day, which happened to be a snowy day, the young men who had gathered at a certain house to drink sake and forget about the end of the year, now, at the cry of Shichinojo calling for help, sprang to their feet, saying that their fellow countryman was in danger. those who had a relationship with her and were included in the group of people who were going to Sanquan, all of them took their night sticks and rushed in together, and they surrounded her and beat her to death without asking her if she had anything to say. (The area of Yagami in the security zone In the Yagami area, where the guards were stationed, there were many people who had learned how to use the nightstick, which was made by rounding off a five-foot-long oak stick. The name “nightstick” is probably derived from the word “night watch.”
The kilns of Oniki The kilns were all destroyed
At this time, someone shouted to the demon tree kilns, and the group, taking advantage of the drunken frenzy of the muddy sake, rushed in, and the Koreans were caught off guard were surprised and panicked, and all twelve of them were killed without exception. With the remaining anger, they destroyed all the pottery equipment from the kiln in a chaotic manner. finally came to their senses from this fit of excitement and madness, they regretted the cruelty of their actions, but it was already too late.
The characteristics of the crowd As a characteristic of the human mind, even those who are normally sensible can lose their self-awareness and act without thinking when they are in a large group. , and someone like Ino, who boasted of his skill as a stick-wielding samurai, is said to have killed the most Koreans at this time, dressed in a straw hat and sandals. Now, is said to be the key used to open the door to the hearth in the house of the local samurai, Masatsune Shiramizu (reserve lieutenant), and is said to be the relic that cut down the nightstick used in the tragedy at the time.
Racial racial jealousy
The cause of this disturbance was probably the racial jealousy of the villagers, who saw her as a rival for the love of the Korean, and who were also jealous of the fact that she was a beautiful woman. In the year Bunkyuu, at the end of the Edo period, the American consulate clerk, Hugh Ken, was assassinated in Mita Furukawabata, Edo, on behalf of the Kiyokawa faction. Although it appeared to be an act of expulsion of foreigners, in reality, racial jealousy over his Western mistress was the main cause of the murder, and because of this the shogunate paid 10,000 koku of gold to his bereaved family, but even if such a large-scale lynching incident as this one in the present river were to have taken place in the depths of the mountains, there is no way that the subsequent discontinuation of production could have been concealed from the lord of Isahaya. However the other party was a foreign vagabond, and it is thought that they were able to get away with it through some kind of petition or campaign.
Sankuhan Mound
In short In the four or five years since the Sankhan group opened a kiln here, there is no other way to see it than to say that this artistic Genkawa ware has become extinct. There was a Sankhan mound made of stone in the rice fields in front of the car park, which was on the Nagasaki Highway in Yagami Village, but it was removed around 1880.
Kiln View Sound
If you climb the mountain called “Yabata” which is the large residence of the Gen River, there is a shrine called “Shikoku Gongen”, and on the hill to the left of it there is a kiln called “Kannon”. has three stone Buddhas enshrined within a small shrine measuring five feet on each side, but the Kannon statue in the front is about 18 inches high, and on the square stone pedestal beneath the lotus throne, the names of the donors are engraved . For some reason, the Buddha statue and the pillars of the hall are all painted bright red with a red pattern, making it difficult to read the carved characters, and this red paint makes me think of the tragedy of the time and makes me feel as if I have goosebumps.
According to the story of a certain person According to some people, the reason why the kiln is called Kannon is that it is a prayer for the happiness of the pottery around the kiln, but traditionally, there are many things that can be worshipped at the top of the kiln are often called Inari shrines or Koryo deities, and there are few examples of elaborate carvings of three statues of Buddha, etc., being worshipped. However when considering whether this is not a tomb of a Tang-style bowl, it is probably a tomb where the three statues of Kannon are enshrined together to pray for the happiness of the 13 people, including the founder of the temple.
The names of the people who donated the statues of Kannon The names of the people who sponsored the statues
are inscribed on the stone: “In the 17th year of Genroku, in the 3rd month of the year of Koshun, on a day of good fortune (1704), the sponsors were Sone Tanaka, Jinnai Tanaka, and Shigetomi Shobei. Next there are also names of donors engraved without surnames, such as Shonosuke’s mother, Edaichi’s mother, Shinkakumon’s mother, Sukegoro’s mother, Morosaemon, and Senukemon. It seems that the people who sympathized with the Koreans who were massacred, including the family of Soetsu, became the donors and built this statue of Kannon, and there is a theory that Jinnai Tanaka was Soetsu’s younger brother, and Shigetomi Shobei was also a local philanthropist.
Soetsu ‘s tombstone
Tanaka Soetsu died on January 20th, 1711, eight years after the construction of the Kama Kannon in 1704, and there is a stone monument in the communal graveyard below the Kama Kannon Hall to this day. there is a three-dimensional statue of Kannon about three feet high resting on top of the tombstone, but it has been damaged by vandals and the head is missing. The person who claims to be a descendant of Soetsu is Hayato Tanaka, who currently lives in Kamikojima-machi, Nagasaki City.
Oniki fragments of kiln remains
The kiln remains are located a short distance down from the hill where the Kannon statue is located. There are also remains of tongs and other tools for firing pottery, and if you look carefully, you can see beautiful blue-green and blue-grey glazes, as well as white brush marks, mottled brush marks, chestnut-colored glazes, chestnut-brown glazes, light-ink glazes, red-brown glazes, and so on. glaze, blue-gray glaze, white brush marks, mottled brush marks, chestnut-colored glaze, chestnut-brown glaze, light-brown glaze, reddish-brown glaze, etc., as well as small fragments with the same brush marks and dot patterns. There are also small dishes with blue-chestnut glaze and bowls with candy glaze, with the foot ring left unglazed and fired in a snail pattern, which seem to be the first works made here. There are small dishes with chestnut glaze and bowls with candy glaze, which have a wide unglazed foot ring and are fired in a snail pattern, which seem to be the first works of this area.
The glazes and clay of the Genkawa glazes and clay body
In addition, the old kiln products mentioned above are decorated with landscapes and flowers using pigments such as gosu, lead-colored and black, and or a clever brushwork can be applied, but it is said that the elegant hues of brownish-red, purple glaze or reddish-brown glaze that appear after firing are due to the influence of the clay body. It is undeniable that many of them are of a nature that is easily damaged in handling because they are not fired to a high enough degree.
This excellent pottery , even the finest wares are now difficult to find in their home region, and have been collected by collectors from other regions.
(However, there are many imitations.) The wares that exist in this region today are mostly field bowls and kitchenware made by individual farmers.
Dan’no exhibit at the Hakurankai
When the first exhibition was held in Nagasaki in the spring of 1879, Katsuji Danno (a wealthy man from Kawauchi, father of former Diet member and Hokkaido Coal and Steamship Company director Reisuke Danno) was asked to send some of the many fine pieces of Kawarayaki ware he owned , which he had sent to be shipped, fell off the truck when crossing the Himi Pass at the time due to carelessness in handling, and it is said that it was also left piled up on the shelves of the family grave, and was largely destroyed by mice and cats.
Baba Fujitayu’s Mountain God
Around 1895, Baba Fujitayu invested several thousand yen in the local mountain god, Jibira, to try and restore the Genkawa River, but although the wood from the demon tree was the same as it had been in the old days, the pottery that was fired up was not at all like it.
Kyuujin Kawauchi Kiln
Around 1850, the aforementioned Katsuji and Matajiro Kawauchi invited artisans from Mikawachi to build a kiln in Kawauchi and attempt to restore the old style, but if you look at the products now, they are completely different from the old Genkawa ware, with a gold-brown base and a glaze that looks like a mottled , and there are small flowers standing out against a background of blue glaze, etc., and although the unglazed parts are similar to stoneware, the product is completely different from the Genkawa ware of old.
Danjo’s porcelain
Perhaps because of this, he gave up on the idea of restoring the old style of production, and next he decided to make white porcelain using materials from Amakusa. This was superior to the previous pottery, and some products, such as the 2-shaku-2-sun ear-attached vase with a landscape design in underglaze blue, were quite remarkable, but the business of producing porcelain to compete with the old pottery was not very easy , and although he had his son graduate from an art school and was keen to continue his research, the kilns were also closed in April of the same year.
Gen-kawa old kiln products
There are also deep brown bowls with a wave pattern brushstroke in a blue-green glaze, and tea bowls with a three-color glaze, or tortoiseshell-patterned tea bowls, as well as blue-green glazed kiln wares in the shape of a blue-green glaze, and a thin-rimmed vase with a greenish brown glaze and white inlaid ancient patterns. There are also simple glazed square dish with a simple Naruko-e inlay design. There is also a 3.5cm sake bottle with a three-striped design in chestnut-colored glaze and a lotus-shaped brushed pattern.
Or there are also other pieces with various kinds of brushwork, such as a five-inch weight-cutting dish with a Musashino (Honami pattern) design in light-brown glaze and iron-line flowers in chestnut-brown glaze, with the leaves outlined in white and the flowers in iron-blue, and others. In addition There are also excellent works such as tea bowls with a delicate rippled brush pattern on a chestnut-colored glaze, Mishima-te, and Miso-mata. Also, among miscellaneous vessels, there are 2-sho sake bottles with the owner’s family crest carved into the amber-colored glaze using the tip of the finger, and then sprinkled with blue medicine.
Genkawa and Kihara
The aforementioned Kihara is a master potter who displayed such skill that his works are almost indistinguishable from those of Genkawa. It is said that Kihara’s works are marked by the use of only a straight stick, but Genkawa’s works are marked by the use of a straight stick and then a bamboo stick
