Specialty. Raku ware tea bowl, red, by Koetsu. There have been several theories about the origin of the name since ancient times, and the “Meimono Meiri Hensho” says, “Kaga Koetsu is said to have been seen in Kanazawa, Kashu. The “Waka Meihiki Exposition” and the “Kogei Shiryo” describe it as a tea bowl made of clay from Kaga (Ishikawa Prefecture), but the “Honcho Pottery Novelization” says, “It was not fired in Kaga, but in Kaga, hence the name ‘left'” and the “Chakki Meimono Zushu” says, “Kaga Koetsu Takamine ware, with the name ‘Kaga Dainagon-sama’ attached. The “Taisho Meikikan” says, “Whether or not there was a kiln in Kaga before the Ohi kiln to make tea bowls is highly doubtful, and perhaps the latter theory is correct. The mouth is chamfered with a spatula and flattened or rounded in some places, which makes for a varied mouth structure. There is a spot of blue flying glaze under the rim and white glaze floating like a cloud around the base. Inside, there are two spots of black unevenness in the reddish brown glaze.
It is considered to be the most scenic of Koetsu’s tea bowls. It was owned by Sen Senzaso, but passed down to Nakamura Kuranosuke in Kyoto, and became the property of Fuyuki Kiheiji in 1714 (Shoutoku 4). (Taisho Meikikan)
