Porcelain Cups and Teapots
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There are many high quality potter's clay excavation sites throughout Japan. Each region has its own distinctive clay characteristics and the potteries made from them have a unique design and uses different techniques from each other, creating such famous porcelain works as, Imari-yaki from Saga, Bizen-yaki from Okayama, Kyo-yaki from Kyoto, and the list will continue. Among these renowned porcelains, we like to introduce Kutani-yaki from Ishikawa.

Ishikawa is a prefecture in the Hokuriku region along with Fukui, Niigata and Toyama prefectures in the northwestern part of Honshu, the main island of Japan, on the Sea of Japan coast. Historically, access to this region from the major cities were inconvenient and because of this remoteness, the area developed its own unique culture. Despite the severe winter storm and snow, the area is blessed with an abundance of seafood and many beautiful scenic spots, which has affected in creating its own Japanese cuisine and confectioneries. It is only natural to presume that the colors of Kutani-yaki were born from this cultural background.

Kutani-yaki or Kutani ware dates back to 1650s in the Kutani village in the southern part of Ishikawa prefecture where high quality potter's clay was excavated. But it suddenly closed down after about fifty years. Nevertheless, it was this period that the unique Kutani colors were developed. Namely, deep dark colors of blue, green, yellow, red and purple are the basic five colors of Kutani. They are not bright and vibrant colors but perfectly matches the climate, culture and cuisine of Hokuriku. The Kutani rebirthed after about a century of silence and continues to thrive to this day with more variety in colors and modern design.

Our Kutani ware selection uses basic colors with a brighter hue and a modern form, suitable for having a variety of tea and coffee or for wine and sake.

Number of items: 11
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  with details    images only