Yixing

Yixing teapots are unglazed earthenware pieces that are used in traditional gong fu cha tea preparation. They are small, beautifully crafted vessels for brewing teas.

Because the clay used for the tea pots are porous, these teapots absorb the flavor, scent and tint of teas brewed in them. After fifteen years of continued usage, one is able to steep a cup of tea in a Yixing teapot without adding tea leaves.

The Yixing teapots in our collection are commissioned directly from artist guilds and studios in Jiangsu Province. We bypassed Yixing itself, the city for which the teapots are named and where the teapots are traded, choosing instead to work with various artist studios in Dingshan, a smaller town about 10 minutes away and closer to where the actual raw materials for Yixing teapots are quarried.

Yixing ware arose during the Jiajing period of the
Ming Dynasty (AD 1368-1644).

Using the mineral rich "zisha" or "purple clay" around the area of Yixing in present day Jiangsu Province, potters began to craft small, unglazed vessels of extraordinary beauty. These teapots quickly gained the favor of the tea drinking literati of that period, many of whom prized Yixing wares for their ability to absorb and enhance the aroma and flavor of tea.

The basic style and character of yixing tea pots have changed very little since the Ming Dynasty.

Traditional Yixing teapots were constructed from a single block of clay, its shape and cavity were both carved with a bamboo tool. Modern day yixing teapots are constructed in a series of panels that are built and finished on a wheel, the spout, handle and lid are shaped separately. This method of “shaping” is distinct from teapots that are turned on a wheel.

The quality and value of a Yixing teapot is based on the authenticity of the clay and the skill of the craftsman. Our Artisan teapots are crafted by highly skilled ceramicists who have just graduated from the tutelage of a Master. Some of the teapots in this collection are the first independent works of young, highly talented artists.

Our Apprentice teapots are crafted by students who are still under the strict guidance of a Master ceramicist. They are simple, very functional teapots that are great for first time Yixing collectors.