Chawan tea bowl decorated with herons

This stoneware tenmoku bowl is decorated with a heron motif; like the crane, the heron is a congratulatory symbol of longevity and perseverance. Tenmoku stoneware copies Chinese Song models and its name is derived from the name of China’s Mount Tien Mu (Eye of Heaven). It is characterized by an admixture of feldspar, limestone and iron oxides. The faster a ware is cooled after firing, the blacker is the resulting shade of the glaze.