Bizen Ware Yunomi Cups — Unglazed Wood-Fired Stoneware, Faceted and Cylindrical Forms

This handleless cups continues in the Bizen ware (備前焼) tradition — fired unglazed at high temperature in a wood kiln, with all of their color coming from direct flame contact and natural ash rather than glaze. Each cup shows the same warm reddish-brown to burnt-orange range seen across Bizen ware, with subtle striping where flame passed unevenly across the surface during the long firing.

The cups take different forms: one is a softly cylindrical cup with a gently undulating wall and a spiral-thrown base carved with a small maker's mark. It share the dense, gritty stoneware body and unglazed finish characteristic of the tradition.

Details:

• Origin: Bizen ware (備前焼), Okayama Prefecture, Japan

• Form: Pair of handleless yunomi cups — one cylindrical with soft faceting, one blockier with a carved rim motif

• Surface: Unglazed stoneware, natural ash and flame markings, no applied glaze

• Color: Reddish-brown to burnt orange, striped/mottled from kiln flame contact

• Base: Spiral throwing marks visible; one cup carries a small carved maker's mark (happy to try reading it from a closer crop)

• Condition: Good vintage/secondhand condition — please see photos for any chips or firing cracks (small pinholes/marks from the firing process are characteristic, not damage)

• Quantity: 1

• Capacity/Dimensions: Approx. 250ml, (L) 7.8cm x (H) 8.8cm