Hagi Chawan — Brushed White Slip, Kiri-Kōdai Cut Foot, Named Box

This Hagi ware tea bowl (chawan) is covered in a soft translucent glaze over bands of brushed white slip, giving a palette of lavender, rose and cream. Inside, the slip follows the throwing rings in a continuous spiral that draws the eye down to the well; outside, it wraps the body in loose horizontal bands. A fine crackle (kannyū) runs through the glaze. In Hagi ware this crackle slowly absorbs tea over years of use, gradually changing the bowl's colour, a quality known as "Hagi no nanabake" (the seven transformations of Hagi).

Hagi ware began in the early 17th century in present-day Yamaguchi, when Korean potters brought to Japan after Hideyoshi's invasions established kilns under the Mōri clan. Its gentle, unassuming character made it a favourite of tea practitioners, captured in the saying "first Raku, second Hagi, third Karatsu."

The form is a wide, flaring bowl on a tall foot, recalling the Korean Ido bowls that Hagi potters inherited. The foot is left partly unglazed, showing the warm orange, gritty clay, and carries a single notch cut through the ring (kiri-kōdai), one of Hagi's best-known signatures. An impressed seal sits beside the cut.

Details:

• Origin: Japan, Hagi ware (Yamaguchi); seal not yet identified

• Form: Flaring Ido-style chawan on a tall foot

• Glaze: Translucent glaze over brushed white slip, lavender-pink tones, fine crackle

• Foot: Tall, partly unglazed orange clay, kiri-kōdai notch, impressed seal

• Box: Paper-covered box with floral and water pattern, label bearing a poetic name (mei)

• Condition: Good secondhand condition — please see photos for any marks

• Dimensions: (Diam.) approx. 14cm x (H) approx. 7.5cm