Page 64 - Sothebys Important Chinese Art London May 2018

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A RARE ‘JIAN’ ‘HARE’S FUR’ TENMOKU In Japan, black ‘Jian’ tea bowls became associated with
BOWL monasteries in the Tianmu (Japanese: Temmoku) mountain
SONG DYNASTY range in Lin’an county, north Zhejiang province, now a nature
reserve renowned for its giant ancient Japanese cedar trees.
of deep conical form with a groove below the lip and a shallow The Japanese term temmoku (or tenmoku) is now universally
straight foot, covered in a thick black lustrous glaze, the accepted for this group of black-glazed bowls, as lasting
interior with silver striations, the exterior with brown striations testimony of this reverence.
at the rim terminating in silvery-blue striations where the glaze
Hare’s fur tea bowls of the striking quality of the present bowl
pools short of the unglazed foot revealing the dark brown body
are rare, and it is related to a small number of prestigious
underneath, the rim mounted in metal, Japanese wood box
‘Jian’ ware tea bowls, despite variations in colour or streaks of
(2)
their hare’s fur pattern; for example see one, also with a metal
12.4 cm, 4⅞ in.
rim mount, included in the exhibition Karamono tenmoku.
This bowl is outstanding for the Þ ne and straight streaks that Fukken shō Kenyō shutsudo tenmoku to Nihon densei no
slice through the rich black glaze. The sumptuous glossiness tenmoku. [Chinese tenmoku. Excavated examples from Fujian
of the original glaze has been preserved, which signiÞ es its and heirloom works from Japan], Chadō Shiryōkan, Kyoto,
position as a precious object within collections throughout its and MOA Art Museum, Atami, 1994, cat. no. 6; and another
history. The evenness of the glaze, which has been masterfully of much lower proportions, from the Tokugawa Art Museum,
applied without the typical pooling to one side, highlights the Nagoya, ibid., cat. no. 16. This exhibition catalogue, where a
perfectly potted form and well-Þ nished foot. The striking black few important heirloom tenmoku tea bowls preserved in Japan
glazes of ‘Jian’ wares derive their uniqueness for their various were juxtaposed with a large sample of excavated sherds
di% erent e% ects, created when air bubbles in the glaze burst from the kiln site, impressively documents the wide range
leaving patterns of streaks or spots, traditionally comparable of qualities and the excellence and rarity of the examples
to hare’s fur or oil spots, that can range in tone from rust collected in Japan. Compare also the famous nogime tenmoku
brown to metallic blue. The Huizong Emperor, one of China’s bowl sold in these rooms, 11 May 2011, lot 7; the exquisite
th
greatest imperial art lovers, patrons and tea connoisseurs, was bowl from the collections of Mikyōdō (ca. 1615-1690) and
a devotee of Fujianese tea and favoured Jian ware bowls. In Fujita Tokujiro, sold in these rooms, 9 November 2016, lot
th
Daguan chalun [A Discourse on Tea in the Daguan Period] of 108; and another bowl without metal rim from the collection
1107, he commented that ‘the desirable colour of a tea bowl is of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, included in
dark black and the best examples display clear and straight fur the Harvard University exhibition, 1996, illustrated in Mowry,
pattern of jade colour, since it highlights the colour of tea’ . op.cit., cat. no. 83.
Black tea bowls were particularly appreciated in Buddhist
಴ £ 40,000-60,000
monasteries, where tea was drunk for its beneÞ cial e% ects
on body and mind as well as ritually o% ered to the Buddha. HK$ 442,000-665,000 US$ 56,500-84,500
The seemingly humble aspect of black tea bowls made them
particularly appropriate in this context. The groove below the
҂ ܔ㜺ලཊՄ૩ຐ
rim made them comfortable to hold; their heavy potting had an
insulating e% ect, keeping the tea inside hot while protecting the
Þ ngers outside from the heat, and their dark interiors made for
a striking contrast with the white froth of whipped tea.
The love and connoisseurship of black-glazed tea bowls from
Fujian is intimately connected with the homage paid to these
ceramics by Japanese collectors and tea masters. Temmoku
tea bowls were probably brought to Japan together with Fujian
tea by Buddhist monks visiting Chinese monasteries in the
Song dynasty. Such bowls were revered virtually from the
moment they left the kilns in the Song dynasty (960-1279).

62 SOTHEBY’S