Height: 8.0 cm, Mouth Diameter: 12.0–13.0 cm, Foot Diameter: 4.9 cm
This is a somewhat large tea bowl and is one of the most outstanding examples among Dōnyū’s fully glazed black tea bowls. The rim is of the so-called “clam-shell” type, curving slightly inward, and the rounded transition from the body to the footring is characteristic of Dōnyū. The interior is large and spacious, with no tea pool, and the bottom is slightly flat. The small footring has a flat base, and inside the footring, Ryōryōsai has inscribed his signature—known as the “Tengu seal”—in red lacquer. The glaze is thick overall, with a heavy layer of curtain glaze covering the body; however, where the curtain glaze breaks, a white snake-and-scorpion glaze appears vividly, which is likely why it was given the name “Remaining Snow.” Clear marks from the tongs used to remove it from the kiln remain. On the underside of the inner box lid is an inscription by Ryoryo Sai Sosa reading, “Nonkou Black Tea Bowl, called ‘Remaining Snow,’ by Kōsetsuken,” and it was formerly passed down in the Kashimaya Hirooka family of Osaka. It is unclear whether this type of fully glazed tea bowl is an earlier or later work in the Dōnyū tradition, but it is a renowned bowl that conveys the spirit of Chōjirō-yaki while demonstrating its own unique artistic vision.
