Height: 9.3 cm, Mouth Diameter: 11.0 cm, Foot Diameter: 4.8 cm
Raku Museum
The lid of the inner box bears the inscription “Red Tea Bowl, One of the ‘Two Hundred,’ Raku Kichizaemon” on the front, and on the back, Takusai has written “Obasute” (with his seal). This is one of the so-called “Taku-ni ‘200’”—a work created by Ryōnyū at the age of 34. It is a tea bowl with a gentle, rounded profile, and the rim undulates softly. The interior is deep, with a stepped pattern running around the inside; the foot is small and charming, and the interior of the foot is quite deep.
Its form does not follow the Dōnyū style that he would later favor, but is based on the Chōjirō style. However, the thin walls and deep interior suggest glimpses of his mid-period style. It is fully glazed and unmarked; indeed, many of the “Taku Ni Hyaku” pieces from this period are unmarked.
