Tamikichi Kato is the founder of Owari Seto porcelain. His first name was Matsutaro (or Matsujiro), the second son of Kichizaemon Keien. His first name was Matsutaro (or Matsujiro), the second son of Kichizaemon Keien. The pottery industry in Seto declined significantly from the middle of the Edo period (1603-1868), with 142 kiln houses in 1773 and less than 100 in 1804. In 1791, the number of employees was changed to two per family. Furthermore, from the Tenmei period (1781-19), new kilns were not allowed to be built except by the heirs, and employees were prohibited from leaving for other countries. In the area of sales, he established a storehouse in Seto, and later, using the dedication of Kato Karazaemon, he established a system of warehouses and took other measures to promote sales in all directions. However, these measures only restrained the decline of the porcelain industry, which continued to decline. Tamikichi’s founding of the porcelain industry was required by the state of the Seto potteries, and his achievement was the Kureraku Koetsu copy tea bowl made by Tamamizu Sohei. Taneomi Tsugane Bunzaemon, an Atsuta magistrate of the Owari Clan, had been working to open a new rice field by filling in the sea surface in Atsuta (Nagoya City), and succeeded in 1801. At that time, due to the decline of the pottery industry, the second and third sons of Seto potters were all idle, so many of them went to Atsuta. Kichizaemon and Tamikichi were among them. When Bunzaemon happened to be patrolling the new rice paddies, he noticed a group of farmers who were not good at farming. When Bunzaemon saw them and questioned Kichizaemon, he was told that they had no choice but to change their occupation because of the system of exclusive occupation of the head of the household in the pottery business. Bunzaemon taught Kichizaemon the formula for Nanjing ware and had him test-fire it in a Seto kiln. During this time, he enthusiastically supported Kichizaemon by providing him with funds, utensils, and other items made by the government and private sectors. Then, he decided to build a new kiln in Atsuta Shinden, and tried to get kiln clay from Kakemura (Handa City) in Chita County to start building a new kiln. Tanezada also provided funds and purchased equipment, and finally the construction of a new kiln was about to be completed.
However, earlier, Kichizaemon visited Kato Karazaemon Takakage in Seto to discuss the Tsugane business. Karazaemon was the village headman and pottery director of Seto Village, and he was happy that his children could earn a living, but he also feared that Seto would deteriorate. He visited Bunzaemon’s sickbed to express his gratitude for his kindness and to complain about his future situation. In other words, there were pottery kilns in Akazu and Shinano in addition to Seto, and while their output was large, demand was low, and there were disputes between manufacturers and wholesalers, which blocked the sales channels. The old pottery alone could no longer survive, as it had disappeared from the Seto Island of Kawarasu. If porcelain were to be produced elsewhere, the old Seto region would face even greater difficulties. Therefore, Bunzaemon requested that the new kiln be moved to Seto because porcelain was more profitable than ceramics. Bunzaemon then asked if there were any facilities for this new business project that would not violate the laws of the time. Karazaemon responded that he would publicly apply for it for the sake of the national interest and his children, and appealed to Mizuno Gompei, the deputy governor. Mizuno visited Bunzaemon and together they petitioned Shimizu Kaimori, a cabinet minister of the Owari Clan, and others to allow Karazaemon and others to apply. This was allowed and the new kiln was moved to Seto. Thus, in November 1801, they began to produce porcelain for the first time. The first to do so were Kato Karazaemon, Kichizaemon, and Tamikichi, as well as Chuji, Toshichi, Shigeyoshi, Naoemon, Ubei, Kanroku, Jibei, Kumuhachi, Tomiemon, Sosuke, Hikohichi, Tomizo, Yaemon, and Niemon, all of whom had started their careers as potters. In the same year, they built a kiln for porcelain for the first time and made some progress for a year or two, but they could not produce anything but ordinary products. He wanted Tamikichi to explore and train at a porcelain kiln in Kyushu. When he asked Mizuno, the deputy governor of Kyushu, for permission to do so, he was granted permission and a favor. He then sought a contact in Nishikita, and learned that the monk Tenchu of Amakusa Temple in Amakusa, Higo Province (Kumamoto Prefecture) was from Aichi Nomura (Hishino, Seto City), and asked the monk to introduce him. Kichizaemon then asked for and received an introduction to Tenchu from Eicho Me, the founder of Horinji Temple in Omori Village, Kasugai County (Omori, Moriyama Ward, Nagoya City), who had been a former disciple of the priest of Toukyouji Temple. Tamikichi promised to accompany Motomon, a disciple of Kozeki-in Temple in Kawana-mura, Aichi County (Kawana-cho, Showa-ku, Nagoya City), when he went to Nagato (Yamaguchi Prefecture) on a pilgrimage. Accordingly, he set a date, borrowed money from Mizuno Gompei, a deputy governor, and departed on February 22, 1804. After parting with Motomon at Shimonoseki in Nagato Province, he traveled to Yanagawa in Chikugo Province (Yanagawa City, Fukuoka Prefecture) and Kawajiri in Higo Province (Kawajiri Town, Kumamoto City), finally arriving at Amakusa Island, where he met with the monk Tenchu at Toukouji Temple, showed him Suei’s calligraphy, and expressed his desire to go to the island. He was so moved by this that he entrusted it to Ueda Gensaku, a porcelain maker in Takahama (Amakusa Town) on the same island. Tamikichi worked hard to learn the techniques here, and by August of the same year, he was able to produce more than 250 tea bowls in a single day. However, Gensaku kept secret from Tamikichi the method of mixing colors and other techniques, and was unwilling to teach them to him. Tamikichi had no choice but to leave Takahama, pretending that he was going to Nagasaki to attend a festival, and secretly returned to Toukyouji Temple to tell Tenchu about his feelings, requesting to go to Hizen Province (Saga and Nagasaki Prefectures). He was given a letter from Tokyouji Temple to go to Saifo-ji Temple in Sasebo Village (Sasebo City) under the rule of the Hizen Hirado clan. When he saw the letter and expressed his wish to a monk at this temple, the monk also agreed and sent the people to Imamura Ikuemon, an official pottery maker of the Matsuura Hizen no Mamoru, as a monk of Yakuoji Temple in Hagyoji Village to introduce them to Mikawachi Mountain (December 16, 2012). He stayed there for several days and benefited greatly, but Kuromasa (the village chief) objected that he could not keep a foreigner there, so Tamikichi had no choice but to return to Yakuoji. The priest entrusted Tamikichi to Kyuemon, a porcelain maker in Enaga-mura, Sasebo City, who praised him and entrusted him to his relative Nizaemon Fukumoto in Sasa-mura, Matsuura County. Nizaemon was so impressed that he immediately appointed Tamikichi as his porcelain craftsman (December 28). Tamikichi worked hard and his skills improved greatly. Nizaemon was pleased to have a good craftsman and taught him his secrets, so Tamikichi worked even harder. Nizaemon therefore gave him money to keep him on his payroll for a long time. When Nizaemon’s son paid a visit to Ise Shrine, Tamikichi took charge of the work on behalf of his son at Nizaemon’s request. He succeeded in firing several kilns of porcelain on his own, and Nizaemon became increasingly impressed with his skill as a craftsman and tried to persuade him not to return to Japan. However, Tamikichi refused to accept his request, saying that he was still inexperienced, and after two more years of hard work, he finally mastered the secrets of mixing raw materials. After two years of hard work, he finally mastered the secrets of mixing raw materials, etc. Tamikichi asked to be allowed to return to Japan, but was denied permission because he did not want to lose a good craftsman, and was repeatedly advised to stay permanently. While Tamikichi was spending his days there, there happened to be a grand puja at Tokoji Temple in the same village, and Tenchu of Amakusa also came to attend. Tamikichi told him of his achievements and Nizaemon’s intentions, and spoke of the clan order and Nizaemon’s kindness regarding his return to Japan. Nizaemon was also now in the process of returning to Amakusa. Nizaemon was forced to accede to Tenchu’s request, and told him to rest for a while and leave in the new year. He left Nizaemon on January 7, 1807, and went to Seiho-ji Temple to apologize to the priests for his success. During this time, he was fortunate enough to see the construction method of the Maru kiln when it was being rebuilt. He then traveled to Amakusa to visit the monk Tenchu and asked for Gensaku Ueda to apologize for his escape. Gensaku agreed and they discussed the method of porcelain making with each other. A few days later, when Tamikichi was about to leave, Gensaku gave him a parting gift of the secret method of nishiki-te ware, a handwritten recipe for blending colors, and also taught him the main points. Tamikichi was grateful and returned to Toukyouji Temple, where he was visited by a couple of Takahama porcelain makers who wanted to follow Tamikichi to Seto. Accompanied only by one of them, Sokichi (also known as Sokichi or Sosaku), Tamikichi borrowed money from the monk Tenchu and departed from Amakusa on May 13, 1807. On the way, he went to Takada, Yatsushiro County, Higo Province (Yatsushiro City, Kumamoto Prefecture), visited Yanagimoto Katsuemon and saw his pottery business, traveled from Hakata to Shimonoseki, and then to Osaka by ship, from where he visited Ise Shrine and returned to Seto on June 18. When Tamikichi returned, the villagers rejoiced with joy, and the governor, Mizuno Gompei, was also satisfied. The people were so moved by this favor that they built a round kiln and presented the new porcelain to the feudal lord, who praised the craftsmanship of the work. The father and son Tamikichi and Satomasa Karazaemon were granted permanent surname belts, and each of them was given three kuchi, or three portions of land for three persons. In addition, Shohichi Tsugane was given a grant of 100 ryo per year for his father’s support from the beginning. The vessels of Tamikichi’s own making are marked with “Zhang,” “Zhangzhou,” “Owari,” “Bunka Zhangzhou Zukuri,” etc., and some are inscribed in blue flowers with “Made in Kyowa-o,” “Made in Bunka-o,” or “Made in Bunka-nen”. The aobana used by Tamikichi at that time was obtained by firing and watering sand and stone from the Seto Mountains, and was called sunae gosu. He died in July 1824 at the age of 53, and was conferred the rank of fifth cousin in November 1928. The above is a summary of Tamikichi’s achievements, but he was not alone in founding Seto porcelain. The establishment of porcelain began with the clan’s planned policy of industrial development, and was supported by the cooperation and patronage of Atuta magistrate Tsugane Bunzaemon and his son, deputy magistrate Mizuno Gonpei, Satomasa Karazaemon Kage-taka, and his father Kichizaemon Kage-tono. It is said that Kato Kumehachi, a potter from Shinano, had already learned the method from Arita’s porcelain craftsman Yushichi during the Tenmei era (1781-19), and that Kato Tadatsugu succeeded in using the method before Tamikichi did. However, it is a fact that Tamikichi went to Kyushu and painstakingly passed on the fundamental techniques of porcelain making, and he should be called the founder of porcelain. Through Tamikichi’s transmission, Seto was revitalized and made a remarkable leap forward. The protection system was also changed drastically, and the traditional pottery business was still defined as the business of the old system of family heads and called the main kiln, while the porcelain business was free to the second and third sons and below and called the new kiln.
According to a survey conducted in 1816 (Bunka 13), there were 88 new kilns out of 167 kilns, and in 1820 (Bunsei 3), the number of new kilns alone had increased to 192. (Somezukeyaki Kigen, Tokei Hou Denki, Toki Hou Denki, Setomura Seiji Kigen Hashi, Seto Togyo Shi, Seto Togyo Shi, Seto no Togyo, Prefectural Pottery History Potter Tradition Hashi, Seto Toki Horyo Sho, Egei Kagami, Nihon Toki Shi Ron, Nihon Kosei Kengyo Shi, Wohari no Hana, etc.)
