Accessories: Box, black lacquer with gold lettering
Dimensions
Height: 6.2-7.0 cm, mouth diameter: 12.0-13.0 cm, body diameter: 13.7 cm, foot diameter: 6.6 cm, height: 3.6 cm, weight: 440 g
As the name “Yū Momiji” suggests, this tea bowl evokes the image of autumn leaves illuminated by the setting sun. The original color plate does not fully capture the vividness of the color, which is a slight regret.
The distinctive feature of this tea bowl is the soft, yuzu-skin texture of the glaze. This texture is naturally formed on the surface of the glaze due to the heat of the kiln, and it is a characteristic that is almost always present in high-quality Shino glaze.
I would like readers to take a close look at the illustrations to appreciate this texture.
This “Yū Momiji” and “Tōtsū” were produced in the same region and were fired at the Mino Ōgaya Kiln Lower Kiln (Ena Town, Gifu Prefecture), as confirmed by the author’s archaeological research.The casual, rough brushstrokes of iron pigment depict what appear to be distant mountains, cypress fences, and flowers, yet even in such a simple design, the distinctive characteristics of Shino tea bowls that harmonize with the “wabi-cha” aesthetic are evident.
The foot is a double, low foot, sharing the same clay color as “Tōtsū.”
