Karatsu Ware Zodiac Tea Bowl (Eto Chawan), Year of the Sheep 2027 — Hakeme Brushed Slip, Iron-Painted Sheep, Wooden Box

This Karatsu-ware (Karatsu-yaki, 唐津焼) matcha bowl is an eto chawan (干支茶碗) for the Year of the Sheep (未, hitsuji). The next Year of the Sheep begins in 2027, so the bowl is ready for the coming New Year tea season, including hatsugama, the first tea gathering of the year. In Japanese tradition the sheep is associated with peace and family harmony, which makes it a well-loved New Year subject.

Karatsu ware comes from northern Kyushu, in present-day Saga Prefecture. Its techniques were shaped by Korean potters in the late 16th century, and tea practitioners have valued its understated, earthy character ever since. This bowl brings together two classic Karatsu approaches. The first is hakeme (刷毛目), in which white slip is swept over the dark clay with a coarse brush, leaving visible bristle marks and streaks where the grey body shows through. The second is iron painting in the e-garatsu (絵唐津) manner. A sheep with curling horns is sketched in a few quick iron-brown strokes, with a row of short dashes suggesting grass below. The drawing is loose and spontaneous rather than precise, which is exactly the appeal of the style.

Inside, a single broad sweep of white slip curves around the well, contrasting with the grey-green ground beneath. A clear glaze covers the whole bowl, with a fine crackle over the white areas and a soft sheen over the grey. The speckled stoneware body is scattered with iron spots, a characteristic of Karatsu clay.

The bowl has a deep form that tapers gently to a tall, sturdy foot, with throwing rings visible on the lower body. The foot-ring rim is left unglazed and has fired to a warm reddish-brown, showing the iron-rich clay beneath. Inside the foot is a trimmed spiral. The bowl comes in a wooden box with a blue cotton cord.

Details:

• Origin: Karatsu ware (Saga Prefecture, Kyushu, Japan)

• Type: Eto chawan (zodiac tea bowl), Year of the Sheep (未)

• Form: Deep matcha tea bowl with tall foot and visible throwing rings

• Glaze: Clear glaze over hakeme brushed white slip on grey stoneware, fine crackle

• Decoration: Iron-painted (e-garatsu style) sheep with curling horns above a band of grass strokes, broad white slip sweep inside

• Base: Foot-ring rim unglazed, showing reddish-brown iron-rich clay, trimmed spiral inside the foot

• Box: Wooden box with blue cotton cord

• Condition: Good vintage/secondhand condition. Iron spots and small glaze pits are natural features of Karatsu clay. Please see photos for any wear beyond the characteristic crackle.

• Dimensions: (D) approx. 12 cm x (H) approx. 8.8 cm