Akae-machi is a district of overglaze enameling companies in the Hizen Arita Sarayama area. In Arita, overglaze painters were separated from the main potters, and as a way to prevent leakage of techniques, they were gathered in one place in Akae-machi during the Kanbun era (1661-73). The number of houses remained at 11 until the Horeki era (1751-64), but in 1770 (Meiwa 7), the number of houses increased by five to 16, and did not seem to increase or decrease until the Meiji Restoration. In 1779, after the Sarayama Kosho asked the 16 akae-machi vendors for their advice, the regulations on inheritance and transfer of servants of akae-machi vendors were strictly enforced as a measure to prevent leakage of secrets. In addition, the handling of raw material preparation methods was forbidden to anyone other than the master and heirs. It seems that many of the pottery methods had been introduced to other countries by people from other countries who had used the techniques in Arita or moved elsewhere. At that time, other ceramic centers did not yet have techniques that surpassed Arita’s in blue-and-white porcelain or red-painted porcelain, so it was necessary to keep the techniques strictly secret. (“History of Arita Porcelain Industry”)
