This extraordinary cha-ire (powdered tea container) displays an excellent glaze that appears to have only grown more intricate and rich with time. Contrasting against a reddish brown background are flows and pools of darker glaze along with lighter textured speckles...

This finely crafted Japanese yakkan (copper teapot) shows the kind of beautiful patina that can only be achieved with time and careful used and looks to date from the Meiji period of the late 1800s.

The brilliant rich auburn color of this type of metalwork is achieved by adding smoked straw during the firing process and often deepens in character over time...

A beautiful and very old Hagi tea bowl; showing signs of long use and appreciation. The gold repairs add to the overall composition and highlight the important role this piece played in someone’s tea practice. Though still functional to be used as a ceremonial implement, this would fit much better as a treasured display object.

In excellent condition this tea bowl is 5.1 inches in diameter at its widest point (13cm), and stands 3.1 inches tall (8cm)...

This lovely Hagi chawan rests firmly on a wari kodai or “split foot” that shows the iron-rich clay this antique piece is fashioned from. The milky glaze varies in consistency across the curves and contours of the bowl with areas tending towards pale ash, ivory, and faint lavender...

Like many pottery traditions in Japan, Karatsu takes its name from the city where it originated. As early as the 15th century, Korean potters heavily influenced the development of this form—helping to endow it with the earthy, simple, and natural qualities it is so appreciated for. With crackled glazing and beautiful gold repairs of several types and from several generations, this antique tea bowl is quite attractive, a pleasure to use, and absolutely one of a kind...

A beautiful old Kyo-ware tea bowl slightly elongated on one end producing an interesting and unique effect. The collector who furnished the box labeled it as being by the legendary potter Ninsei (17th C.). Though the potter’s mark suggests this could be the case, there is no way to confirm for certain other than by its age and undeniably elegant craftsmanship...

Oribe is a visual style named after the late-16th-century tea master Furuta Oribe (1544-1615). Kuro Oribe pieces are the most common with their jet-black glazes and feldspar ornamentation tending towards the minimalistic, abstract; and, some would say, Zen-like aesthetic. While the piece shown here is not entirely typical of Oribe pieces, the black glaze, contrast window, and unmistakable kutsugata shape all point to this genre of Minō pottery...

This generously proportioned chawan (13.5cm in diameter) shows nice age, especially around the kodai, and likely dates from early Edo (several hundred years old). The base is unglazed showing the molded clay, contrasting nicely with the jet black glaze which displays a slight purplish hue when held to the light. The soft sheen of the Raku glaze overlying rippled and shaved clay gives this bowl a distinct presence...

The shape of the this tea bowl is known as “tsutsu” in Japanese and is regarded as being especially attractive. Tsutsu bowls are used mainly in the depths of winter to keep in the heat and prevent the tea from cooling too quickly. Though most tsutsu bowls are defined by their smooth, curved edges and contoured clay bodies, this piece is distinct in having more defined edges and straight sides...

This lovely Shino tea bowl fashioned from coarse Mino clay is covered in feldspar glazing, has a classic ferrous abstract painting across the front, and shows nice age—most likely from early to middle Edo.

Shino-ware dates to the Momoyama period when potters were attempting to recreate white porcelain-wares that were being imported from China at the time. Originally they were made in a single-chamber anagama style kilns set into the hillsides...

Well proportioned and exceptionally light in the hand, this lovely tea bowl features a stylized depiction of a horse in stride in what appears to be a brown ferrous glaze on a background of ash glaze (灰油 hai-yu)...

An ancient MesoAmerican Olmec bluegreen stone hand axe tool mounted on a custom stand. Neolithic stone implement.

Date: 1150-550 BC

Dimensions: 6" X 2.5" including stand, stone is 4" X 2.25"

Shino Ware: The Beauty of Whiteness and Organic Irregularity...

This lovely Shino tea bowl fashioned from coarse Mino clay is covered in feldspar glazing, has a classic ferrous abstract painting across the front, and shows nice age—most likely from early Edo.

Shino-ware dates to the Momoyama period when potters were attempting to recreate white porcelain-wares that were being imported from China at the time. Originally they were made in a single-chamber anagama style kilns set into the hillsides...

Looking as though it were cast from molten rock, this chawan has a very earthy and primal feel to it. The rich clay shows through in places hinting of ochre, yellow, and even a subtle metallic blue—cleverly mimicking the way mineral formations appear in nature...

An eye-catching combination of red lacquer and gold repairs on a classic Karatsu tea bowl dating from Edo...

This Madara-garatsu tea bowl (Madara Karatsu-ware) uses a technique known as yobitsugi—using pottery shards from other works to complete the gold repair—thereby adding a special character to the piece. It is also worth noting that although many kilns currently exist which specialize in Madara-garatsu ware, this piece comes from the original Kishidake family kiln where the tradition began.

Madara-garatsu is one type of Karatsu-ware which takes its name from its spotted or speckle...

Oribe is a visual style named after the late-16th-century tea master Furuta Oribe (1544-1615). Typically, black or green glazes are applied to the bodies of these works and light-colored windows are created using feldspar. These high-contrast areas then act as a canvas upon which abstract, minimalistic, and often naturalistic themes are painted.

As can be seen here, this piece is of the green variety and looks to be from the mid-to-early Edo period as can be determined ...