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Bok wrote: ↑

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...

nice pot!!

@Victoria , @steanze cheers guys, I am quite happy with it as well, go some more in the back pocket

What is rally nice with this one, is the way the handle is designed, it helps to balance the bottom heavy proportions of the body. Would that be a Lixing or Bale? Pear/Guava shape? I find quite some terms for this kind of shape, not sure which it should be?

Really been digging this 110ml duanni. The clay is so nice in the hands!!

TheartofMat wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 30, 2019 7:18 am

Really been digging this 110ml duanni. The clay is so nice in the hands!!

Nice! What kind of tea do you usually brew in it?

Hi,

can you Id this author and any comments on the clay type? It has around 150ml. Thank you

@lopin some sort of hongni clay I guess. But it looks rather thick or medium walled, so probably suitable for aged, more roasted teas.

Doesn’t look like pure hongni to me, blended with something. Too shiny as well and the tone doesn’t seem right for
Zhuni. So all in all something modern with a hongni-like clay.

Any pictures of the inside lid and body? Seal chop is not the most reliable clue without the rest of the pots features.

Bok wrote: ↑

Fri May 17, 2019 10:27 am

lopin some sort of hongni clay I guess. But it looks rather thick or medium walled, so probably suitable for aged, more roasted teas.

Doesn’t look like pure hongni to me, blended with something. Too shiny as well and the tone doesn’t seem right for
Zhuni. So all in all something modern with a hongni-like clay.

Any pictures of the inside lid and body? Seal chop is not the most reliable clue without the rest of the pots features.

Hi Bok, agree, it is not Zhuni and seems it is blended. Definitely modern, even the box is modern, with textile and pouch. it is not that thick though, under openning it is thinner, see spout picture. I am thinking either yancha - but too big for that or old sheng?

@lopin what matters is the thickness of the walls, even the spout is medium thick in my book.

150 is way to big for Yancha, unless you are a big spender haha! Also with the thickness in mind, even less suitable.

Don’t know about the pour speed, but anything slower than 6 seconds is not ideal for Yancha.

Just try a variety of teas and see what works for you(more than once per tea to account for other parameters).

@Bok thnak you Bok. I was still hoping to find the author. it is nice to connect a pot with a face. But can't read the chop.

My new big baby. Likely late Qing/early ROC. The craftsmanship is quite crude - you can really see the maker didn't have time to bother too much with details, but the pot has a really lovely presence, and a nice clay with a nice patina.

.m. wrote: ↑

Sat May 18, 2019 3:50 am

My new big baby. Likely late Qing/early ROC. The craftsmanship is quite crude - you can really see the maker didn't have time to bother too much with details, but the pot has a really lovely presence, and a nice clay with a nice patina.

Nice one! Do you have pictures of the inside? I find myself quite liking those more “peasant” quality pots as well.

Do not think time is the issue for the artisan, they did nothing else the whole day... more likely it was done by a less skilled artisan or with the demand to just finish it rudimentary as the selling price was low.

Below one of my latest finds:
A early ROC Julunzhu in what very likely is Qinghuini clay. Still need to confirm that with another expert showing the pot in person, pictures only get you that far, especially with rarer clays.

Had to do some major cleaning with this one, the worst of all my old pots so far... still some corners left over which are difficult to finish.

Lovely workmanship on this one and thinly built. Haven’t tried it with any teas yet, hearsay has it Qinhuini is difficult to match to the right tea...

Bok wrote: ↑

Sat May 18, 2019 4:46 am

Nice one! Do you have pictures of the inside? I find myself quite liking those more “peasant” quality pots as well.
Do not think time is the issue for the artisan, they did nothing else the whole day... more likely it was done by a less skilled artisan or with the demand to just finish it rudimentary as the selling price was low.

Below one of my latest finds:
A early ROC Julunzhu in what very likely is Qinghuini clay. Still need to confirm that with another expert showing the pot in person, pictures only get you that far, especially with rarer clays.
Had to do some major cleaning with this one, the worst of all my old pots so far... still some corners left over which are difficult to finish.
Lovely workmanship on this one and thinly built. Haven’t tried it with any teas yet, hearsay has it Qinhuini is difficult to match to the right tea...

That's a very nice pot, and a rare clay!

OK, here's a photo of the interior on mine. I don't really know anything about the life of yixing craftsmen back then, but i'm guessing that because the selling price on these pots was probably quite low, they had to make a lot of them. While the artisan might have lacked the skill to make more refined pots that would command higher price, i don't think the "crudeness" in this case was due to lack of skill: the roughness of the inside of the rim and of the points where the handle and lids are attached, or the vertical lines merely suggesting the pumpkin shape instead of forming it, it all suggest it was made very quickly.

TheartofMat wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 30, 2019 7:18 am

Really been digging this 110ml duanni. The clay is so nice in the hands!!

Absolutely beautiful. You guys always make me so jealous with your gorgeous teaware pictures!

Hi All,

Here is a mystery pot I have been working on
- Size of pot in ml or oz.
about 160 ml
- Clay type (zhu ni, hong ni, zi ni, duan ni, ...)
Zini most likely. The pot has speckle of yellow near handle and sprout and inconsistent throughout the body of the pot, so it could be a feature of di cao qing or zini with duan ni.
- Firing temperature: Low/Med/High fired?
Based on the sound, my guess would be medium fired
- If the pot is thin-walled, medium, or thick-walled.
In comparison to my F1 pots, the wall is thicker, so I am guessing medium-thick wall.
- How long is the pour?
14 seconds
- What year/decade the pot was made?
This is one category I am bad at. Based on the lid fit, and the possibility of being fired twice is high (the skirt of the lid has been polished), I am thinking 90s to current.
- If known, the craftsman or factory
The stamp indicate a factory pot. The artist stamped on the lid with 2 characters. Based on my online research, 2 artists with this name in the yixing factory period. If anyone know about the stamp and artist name, I would greatly appreciate the info.
- What type of tea you make with it?
Still in the process of testing the safety of using this pot. The pot arrived with an earthy smell, I boiled the pot 2 times for 30 minutes to 1 hour, then submerge it in a pot of Shu Pu erh. The earthy smell has gone, but the first sample with hot water left a minor note of spice on my tongue, but my throat didn't sense anything. So, this is the mystery I have been trying to solve. I tried twice, one with just hot water, one with tea. The spice/tingling sensation went away within a hour, and I didn't get sick. If anyone has experienced this before, please provide me with some input : )
- What is the effect of the pot on tea? Why do you like to brew a certain tea in it, and what does it do for that tea?
I only tried to brew Sheng Pu Erh once, minus the minor note of spice on my tongue (may be placebo effect), the pot provides a good taming effect on astringent taste of Sheng Pu Erh, and based on how fast the water evaporates from the pot, it seems very porous as well. Here is a few photos

@DailyTX I think your a preliminary analysis is not bad, probably not far off the mark. It looks like a decent pot and also like it will become nice with usage.