Yixing

User avatar
Isarite
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Jan 15, 2019 8:01 am
Location: Lithuania

Fri Mar 01, 2019 11:07 am

@Chadrinkincat
Thank you for your guidance! I had my doubts, since the sticker was kinda suspicious (the letters were a bit strange), but I know now. The teapot is pretty nice anyway, and it is not like I bought it for the price of a real thing.
Anyways, I finally got a small one, though it is a decorative. Not sure if the shape is fit to make tea with.
Image
Image
Image
Image
It is a buddha's hand (the fruit) with a peanut (I think) on top. At first I thought It might not even be a real yixing since it was so light, but the clay looks fine and there are tool marks on the inside corresponding with the vines outside the teapot, and the teapot smells only of clay.
Image
- Size of pot in ml or oz: ~100 ml filled to the brim.
- Clay type (zhu ni, hong ni, zi ni, duan ni, ...): Hong ni, with some blue clay (at least it looks like clay) applied on top.
- Firing temperature: Low/Med/High fired?: Can't tell. Very bright sound, but that might be due to thin walls.
- If the pot is thin-walled, medium, or thick-walled: Thin walled, very much so.
- How long is the pour?: ~6 seconds.
- What year/decade the pot was made? It looks old, but it is hard to tell.
- If known, the craftsman or factory: Probably some minor studio making these in larger amounts. The seal looks weird, maybe meant to imitate qing dinasty pots?
- What type of tea you make with it? Don't know yet. The shape of the teapot is irregular, so It might be not optimal for tea.
User avatar
Bok
Vendor
Posts: 5782
Joined: Wed Oct 04, 2017 8:55 am
Location: Taiwan

Sat Mar 02, 2019 3:48 am

2019 is starting well... a long time wish of mine, which I did not think attainable has come true: a ROC Biandeng (one of my favourite shapes) and on top of all it is Zhuni clay!

Lid is a bit banged up, but I’ll probably Kintsugi it. Also the whole pot is warped from the firing, funnily the slanted spout is perfect for left handed me.

Two off the checklist in one go :)
Attachments
938E71F1-1AEF-4131-9375-81B4E321AC29.jpeg
938E71F1-1AEF-4131-9375-81B4E321AC29.jpeg (205.09 KiB) Viewed 8215 times
CB59E318-D81C-4B37-974C-ADC8B9CD558C.jpeg
CB59E318-D81C-4B37-974C-ADC8B9CD558C.jpeg (115.65 KiB) Viewed 8215 times
841C4BEF-FFD7-40EF-9036-78E2F4490345.jpeg
841C4BEF-FFD7-40EF-9036-78E2F4490345.jpeg (156.04 KiB) Viewed 8215 times
User avatar
steanze
Vendor
Posts: 985
Joined: Mon Oct 09, 2017 4:17 pm
Location: USA

Sat Mar 02, 2019 1:39 pm

Bok wrote:
Sat Mar 02, 2019 3:48 am
2019 is starting well... a long time wish of mine, which I did not think attainable has come true: a ROC Biandeng (one of my favourite shapes) and on top of all it is Zhuni clay!

Lid is a bit banged up, but I’ll probably Kintsugi it. Also the whole pot is warped from the firing, funnily the slanted spout is perfect for left handed me.

Two off the checklist in one go :)
Great! You can definitely kintsugi it, there are only a few chips around the lid, nothing major.
User avatar
Stephen
Posts: 227
Joined: Thu Oct 12, 2017 9:26 pm
Location: Bay Area, California

Sun Mar 03, 2019 2:21 pm

Recent acquisition. About 200ml, single hole. One of my favorite shapes. Hard to get good pics on this rainy day! Thoughts on origin, era and clay type?
Attachments
20190303_115836.jpg
20190303_115836.jpg (170.82 KiB) Viewed 8144 times
20190303_115901.jpg
20190303_115901.jpg (183.2 KiB) Viewed 8144 times
20190303_120251.jpg
20190303_120251.jpg (165.46 KiB) Viewed 8144 times
User avatar
steanze
Vendor
Posts: 985
Joined: Mon Oct 09, 2017 4:17 pm
Location: USA

Tue Mar 05, 2019 2:11 pm

Stephen wrote:
Sun Mar 03, 2019 2:21 pm
Recent acquisition. About 200ml, single hole. One of my favorite shapes. Hard to get good pics on this rainy day! Thoughts on origin, era and clay type?
Nice :) it's a zini teapot, imo a modern replica (2000s) of a late 70s-80s factory 1 teapot.
User avatar
Stephen
Posts: 227
Joined: Thu Oct 12, 2017 9:26 pm
Location: Bay Area, California

Tue Mar 05, 2019 3:40 pm

steanze wrote:
Tue Mar 05, 2019 2:11 pm
Nice :) it's a zini teapot, imo a modern replica (2000s) of a late 70s-80s factory 1 teapot.
Thanks! I didn't realize it was a replica of a factory 1. Would this be considered qing shui ni clay? The clay is course, but also dense (heavy.)
User avatar
steanze
Vendor
Posts: 985
Joined: Mon Oct 09, 2017 4:17 pm
Location: USA

Tue Mar 05, 2019 4:51 pm

Stephen wrote:
Tue Mar 05, 2019 3:40 pm
Thanks! I didn't realize it was a replica of a factory 1. Would this be considered qing shui ni clay? The clay is course, but also dense (heavy.)
Yes, it doesn't matter as long as it makes good tea and you were not told it is F1 :)
I would just call this clay "zini". Qingshuini is a subtype of zini. This pot does not look like qingshuini, although it can be tricky to tell with pictures. It seems a bit dark and the texture is a bit more uniform than I would expect in qingshuini.

Whether a pot is qingshuini or some other kind of zini does not really have much impact on the performance for tea and on the value of the pot. Once you know that a pot is zini what matters most is the quality of the clay, grain size, and firing temperature. Clays with a same name can range from pretty bad quality to great. The discourse is different if we are referring to more specific clay batches. For example, the qingshuini used in the 1970s is a relatively uniform batch and it is pretty good clay. This does not mean that all clay labeled "qingshuini" is like that though. For modern pots the production volume is very large, so there is more variety in the clays used, there isn't a standard "2000s qingshuini" like there was a 70s F1 qingshuini.
User avatar
Stephen
Posts: 227
Joined: Thu Oct 12, 2017 9:26 pm
Location: Bay Area, California

Tue Mar 05, 2019 5:37 pm

steanze wrote:
Tue Mar 05, 2019 4:51 pm
Yes, it doesn't matter as long as it makes good tea and you were not told it is F1 :)
I would just call this clay "zini". Qingshuini is a subtype of zini. This pot does not look like qingshuini, although it can be tricky to tell with pictures. It seems a bit dark and the texture is a bit more uniform than I would expect in qingshuini.
I was guessing it was a replica or version of the "please drink oolong" commissioned teapots. But then I guess those commissioned teapots were all made by factory 1?

No claims were made about this pot. I just liked the clay and that I got it for next to nothing!

Thanks for the insight on the clay and I see what you mean about the color and texture.
User avatar
steanze
Vendor
Posts: 985
Joined: Mon Oct 09, 2017 4:17 pm
Location: USA

Tue Mar 05, 2019 6:20 pm

Stephen wrote:
Tue Mar 05, 2019 5:37 pm
I was guessing it was a replica or version of the "please drink oolong" commissioned teapots. But then I guess those commissioned teapots were all made by factory 1?

No claims were made about this pot. I just liked the clay and that I got it for next to nothing!

Thanks for the insight on the clay and I see what you mean about the color and texture.
You are welcome :) The "please drink" were made by F1 but there are countless replicas around :) Nice score.
User avatar
Bok
Vendor
Posts: 5782
Joined: Wed Oct 04, 2017 8:55 am
Location: Taiwan

Mon Mar 11, 2019 11:11 pm

Edit: sorry irrelevant post...
User avatar
Stephen
Posts: 227
Joined: Thu Oct 12, 2017 9:26 pm
Location: Bay Area, California

Mon Apr 01, 2019 9:40 pm

I came across this 135ml teapot. Interesting cabbage shape, thin walls and nice pour with single hole. Looks like original box with note from original owner inside, "Green cabbage, collectors teapot, 5/1994, $37.90, yi xing." I have no experience with muo lu ni so would like comments on the clay and pot. Thanks!
Attachments
20170403_135538_Richtone(HDR).jpg
20170403_135538_Richtone(HDR).jpg (194.3 KiB) Viewed 7838 times
20170403_140017_Richtone(HDR).jpg
20170403_140017_Richtone(HDR).jpg (174.33 KiB) Viewed 7843 times
20170403_135828.jpg
20170403_135828.jpg (202.39 KiB) Viewed 7845 times
Last edited by Stephen on Mon Apr 01, 2019 9:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
Bok
Vendor
Posts: 5782
Joined: Wed Oct 04, 2017 8:55 am
Location: Taiwan

Mon Apr 01, 2019 9:47 pm

Stephen wrote:
Mon Apr 01, 2019 9:40 pm
I came across this 135ml teapot. Interesting cabbage shape, thin walls and nice pour with single hole. Looks like original box with note from original owner inside, "Green cabbage, collectors teapot, 5/1994, $37.90, yi xing." I have no experience with muo lu ni so would like comments on the clay and pot. Thanks!
Interesting, quirky design, they really do like their cabbage :) All in all with background story and little note, seems entirely possible that it is a real Yixing pot. Clay probably has some additives in it to achieve the colouring, this is definitely not a naturally occurring clay colour or blend.

I think I remember someone mentioning this kind of clay being good for high mountain oolong…
User avatar
Stephen
Posts: 227
Joined: Thu Oct 12, 2017 9:26 pm
Location: Bay Area, California

Tue Apr 02, 2019 1:37 pm

Bok wrote:
Mon Apr 01, 2019 9:47 pm
Interesting, quirky design, they really do like their cabbage :) All in all with background story and little note, seems entirely possible that it is a real Yixing pot. Clay probably has some additives in it to achieve the colouring, this is definitely not a naturally occurring clay colour or blend.

I think I remember someone mentioning this kind of clay being good for high mountain oolong…
Yes, I believe mo lu ni uses cobalt oxide for color. I don't know mo lu ni clay that well, curious about the quality of the clay in this teapot.

The lid opening is really small which might make it more practical for rolled tea or small loose leaf tea.

Gotta love the cabbage :)
User avatar
Bok
Vendor
Posts: 5782
Joined: Wed Oct 04, 2017 8:55 am
Location: Taiwan

Mon Apr 29, 2019 2:21 am

Late Qing, early ROC hongni pot. The more I see of these antique pots the more I realise how clean the factory era pots are! Those old pots all have a lot of iron dots and others. The workmanship is more crisp. Yet there is something to be said about the soft lines of the early factory period, if I compare it to my 60s pot. This one has some major chips on the inside lid and hairlines, but that is to be expected.

This one seems on the lower fired side, judging by the sound of it. Does not render it muting though. Haven’t used it much yet as it is a tad too large for my brewing habits at 150ml. Kind of an all round performer, no tea stood out in it as of yet. Old pots need a lot of tea before they show what they can do...
Attachments
58DE8FAD-DA76-403A-9B5A-491C190CF678.jpeg
58DE8FAD-DA76-403A-9B5A-491C190CF678.jpeg (124.26 KiB) Viewed 7594 times
4B489BD4-5D1B-4643-B0C7-336DB725629F.jpeg
4B489BD4-5D1B-4643-B0C7-336DB725629F.jpeg (109.78 KiB) Viewed 7594 times
User avatar
Victoria
Admin
Posts: 3043
Joined: Sat Sep 30, 2017 3:33 pm
Location: Santa Monica, CA
Contact:

Mon Apr 29, 2019 1:24 pm

@Bok nice find. The form is so elegant and clay looks really nice as well.
Post Reply