So after my successful thinning out of the teaware cupboard, I had a less bad conscience to acquire this new flat friend. It has spent a long time on someone’s shelf, for how long exactly I am still enquiring and the community’s input would be more than welcome as ever!
What I know from the seller is that he bought a bunch of pots a long time ago in Yixing. Clay does not look modern to me, but not exactly old either. I really like the shape which is why I do not terribly care if it is the rarest old thing ever or newer, but the historian and teapot geek in me is still curious about the background.
It has a four character chop 高红娟 Gao Hongjuan, which is a person’s name and most likely a woman’s. Google has it there is an Yixing artist by that name but her chop looks different and the clay she used is Zini only, at least there are no other images I can find.
The pot itself is very well made, I almost think fully handmade, every detail is very well taken care of, which speaks against F1 in my limited knowledge.
Even the spouthole and the inner rim has no rough edges as factory pots usually do.
Clay looks hongni to me, I can see some very tiny black dots, less than a mm. And some other very tiny reflective dots (?).
Nice ring to it, so high fired-ish.
The lid is almost impossible to lift when filled and sealed with tea and water, possibly to the geometry and large sealing surface.
Pour is around 8-10sec and the volume is around 130+ ml.
I am not home so the tea I brewed was only (haha I know...) Dayuling.
In theory, rolled Oolong should not fare well in flat pots, but it was delicious nonetheless! On the contrary the tea benefited from the rather large opening and I slightly adjusted the amount of tea I loaded in.
New flat friend
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Last edited by Bok on Sat Mar 24, 2018 11:18 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Beautiful pot! I think you got hold of a nice one. I see many years of tea enjoyment ahead.
Yes! Me too! What regards usability, I have found flatter pots still more usable than too tall pots. Goldilocks are of course the round medium profile ones.
Been researching the supposed artist and getting conflicting information and hints about the possible vintage of this pot. Maybe the seal on my pot is a previous seal she used. Those seals get slowly grinder down over time and would have been in need of replacement at some point, especially as they were used on clay which will speed up the abrasion as opposed to use on paper.
I found other pots signed by this name which are dated early 80ies. Including some hongni.
I might have been lucky and the pot really is from one of the better artisans of Yixing... the craftsmanship definitely hints to a higher level of expertise!
Nice pot! My guess is late '80s to 90s, hongni, mold-assisted construction (I don't see signs of hand-making, but they might be visible in person). But take my guess with a grain of salt as this period is a bit outside the period I am most familiar withBok wrote: ↑Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:50 pmYes! Me too! What regards usability, I have found flatter pots still more usable than too tall pots. Goldilocks are of course the round medium profile ones.
Been researching the supposed artist and getting conflicting information and hints about the possible vintage of this pot. Maybe the seal on my pot is a previous seal she used. Those seals get slowly grinder down over time and would have been in need of replacement at some point, especially as they were used on clay which will speed up the abrasion as opposed to use on paper.
I found other pots signed by this name which are dated early 80ies. Including some hongni.
I might have been lucky and the pot really is from one of the better artisans of Yixing... the craftsmanship definitely hints to a higher level of expertise!
from the 90s onward several potters adopted a double-firing strategy, in which after a first firing the lid is sanded to fit perfectly with the body and refired. This leads to much better lid fit than during the 80s and earlier and than during ROC and Qing.The tiny reflective dots are silica, usually the fewer there are, the longer the weathering process of the clay. You tend to see less in 60s factory pots than in 70s pots for example, because in the 60s the production output was less and the clay was weathered for longer.
Thanks for the input! Makes sense, the seller mentioned 1985 but as to how he can be so accurate I have no idea, which is why I do not give it credit unless confirmed by other parties...steanze wrote: ↑Sat Mar 24, 2018 11:08 pmNice pot! My guess is late '80s to 90s, hongni, mold-assisted construction (I don't see signs of hand-making, but they might be visible in person). But take my guess with a grain of salt as this period is a bit outside the period I am most familiar withBok wrote: ↑Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:50 pmYes! Me too! What regards usability, I have found flatter pots still more usable than too tall pots. Goldilocks are of course the round medium profile ones.
Been researching the supposed artist and getting conflicting information and hints about the possible vintage of this pot. Maybe the seal on my pot is a previous seal she used. Those seals get slowly grinder down over time and would have been in need of replacement at some point, especially as they were used on clay which will speed up the abrasion as opposed to use on paper.
I found other pots signed by this name which are dated early 80ies. Including some hongni.
I might have been lucky and the pot really is from one of the better artisans of Yixing... the craftsmanship definitely hints to a higher level of expertise!
The tiny reflective dots are silica, usually the fewer there are, the longer the weathering process of the clay. You tend to see less in 60s factory pots than in 70s pots for example, because in the 60s the production output was less and the clay was weathered for longer.
What would be tell tale signs of hand making?
Last edited by pedant on Sat Mar 24, 2018 11:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: mod edit: fixed nested quote issue
Reason: mod edit: fixed nested quote issue
nice pot
i like the shape of the spout, and in addition to the flat overall shape, the large, super flat lid gives it a stylish and distinctive look.
i like the shape of the spout, and in addition to the flat overall shape, the large, super flat lid gives it a stylish and distinctive look.
2000s IMO! 85 too early considering it is non-Factory. Nice pot!
The pot should be a factory pot, maybe later years but the potter has the title of gongyimeishu yuan, so a factory craftsman.
At least that is why my research has yielded so far and if it is indeed the same potter with a different seal...
Pots were also definitely bought in bulk before F1 ceased to exist.
Like this one: http://ching158.pixnet.net/blog/post/8291164
Same name, different seal, age says 82-86.
Another 高紅娟 I found in the national artisan directory is born 1975, so it all does not make perfect sense... confusing and... interesting. Feel like Sherlock in China, just less smart and with little clue
Same name, different seal, age says 82-86.
Another 高紅娟 I found in the national artisan directory is born 1975, so it all does not make perfect sense... confusing and... interesting. Feel like Sherlock in China, just less smart and with little clue
I didn't think pots were made that early without Yixing China (or simply no) seals, although I know Taiwan is a bit of an exception because of the import laws about Mainland products back then. It's possible he was still considered a factory craftsman after the opening up of the market. Happy to be corrected if I'm wrong! As far as bulk purchases, no contention there. Yixing pots went everywhere in the 80s!
Also is that purple clay I see under the red in the inside rim of the pot? Or just a trick of the light? The firing marks inside look like the kind you'd find on later pots as well...
download/file.php?id=849
I see you posted it in the Teapot2 group!
Also is that purple clay I see under the red in the inside rim of the pot? Or just a trick of the light? The firing marks inside look like the kind you'd find on later pots as well...
download/file.php?id=849
I see you posted it in the Teapot2 group!
Last edited by tealifehk on Sun Mar 25, 2018 6:10 am, edited 2 times in total.
Yes, after all the Asian collectors surpass most of us in experience and access to the real deal, especially when it gets complicated! So far no one replied though, seems most people browse when at work, haha!tealifehk wrote: ↑Sun Mar 25, 2018 5:58 amI didn't think pots were made that early without Yixing China (or simply no) seals, although I know Taiwan is a bit of an exception because of the import laws about Mainland products back then. It's possible he was still considered a factory craftsman after the opening up of the market. Happy to be corrected if I'm wrong! As far as bulk purchases, no contention there. Yixing pots went everywhere in the 80s!
Also is that purple clay I see under the red in the inside rim of the pot? Or just a trick of the light? The firing marks inside look like the kind you'd find on later pots as well...
download/file.php?id=849
I see you posted it in the Teapot2 group!
Seems the whole craftsman’s seal story is another level of complications...
As far as the rim goes, I am not sure where that comes from it does not look and feel like the Nzwh or nwlh we were discussing recently. Maybe something like what Steanze mentioned: marks from sanding in between firings for better fit. I can not see any brush marks or other as I did on my biandeng. Colour difference is not as big in real life.