Teapot Tuesday

More Chinese Teapots

We have two teapots that are of a similar style.  They are probably about 80-100 years old and well used.  They are made of bronze, to take the high temperatures, and tinned (or maybe silvered?) to improve the flavour.  We have not been able to find any information about these unusual  and possibly unique teapots, fitted with their own chimneys and charcoal burners to keep the tea hot.

They are not particularly beautiful; they are interesting:

You can see the chamber on the front where the nugget of coal would be placed.  The handle is wound with bamboo to protect the handle from heat.

You can see the chimney and the open ring lid which would cover the tea but leave the chimney open.  The interior has calcium deposits and many signs of use.   The teapot has a surprising capacity of 350 ml, given it is only 8 cm high (about 3 inches).  It is also quite heavy, roughly 1 kg.

The second, larger pot is similar in structure to the first.

This one stands 10 cm to the shoulder and has a capacity of 675 ml.  It is really heavy, especially when full.

Note the chimney and the open ring top, identical to the lid of the smaller teapot.

In order to give you the capacity of the teapots, I filled them with water and then poured the contents into a measuring cup.  One thing I loathe in a teapot, is the inability to pour smoothly, to have a dripping spout and a splashy nature.  These two teapots poured like gems, giving a little twist to the stream as it emerged from the spout.  Not a single drip, not a splash.

If metal workers a hundred years ago could make a perfect spout, why is it not possible to buy a new teapot with a drip-less spout?

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Teapot Tuesday

Is it possible to have too many teapots?  There is always the V & A to help me look sane ...

Yixing clay teapots in the V & A Museum

According to wiki-wisdom, Yixing clay is perfect for teaware due to its sandy  and highly cohesive nature, allowing for an unglazed surface.  The porous nature of the surface means that tea is absorbed into the pot, adding to the complexity of flavours and making Yixing teapots highly prized, especially old ones.

The clay has been extracted in the Jiangsu province since at least the Song dynasty, one thousand years ago.  Some of the old sources of the clay are worked out, making new teapots scarce and expensive.  I understand that it is no longer possible to export old teapots from China as belatedly, the government has decided to preserve the cultural history of this ancient and complex land.

Teapots come in a variety of shapes and sizes, although most are smaller than Western style teapots. Some are highly decorated and formal, while others reflect popular themes and whimsical characters.

I like miniature teasets which is why I bought this one - teapot lid on teapot:

This one is in the form of a lotus root.  Lotus flowers are important in Buddhist iconography:

Symbols representing good luck, wisdom and wealth are common in all sorts of Chinese artefacts, fabrics and furniture.  Wise men and Bodhavistas (holy beings who have attained enlightenment but remain amongst the living to assist them on their paths) are also common images.  This teapot cradles one of the Wise Men - Fu Lu Shou - who is supposed to bring wealth and propserity to the owner.

I suspect there would have been a set of three teapots originally, each representing one of the Fu Lu Shou attributes (Good Fortune, Prosperity and Longevity).  He is holding a golden ingot or yuan bao, to encourage wealth or good fortune.  Some representations of the Fu Lu Shou combine the three attributes of the Wise Men into one figure.

This little piggy is my favourite:

The pig is associated with fertility and virility in the twelve-year Chinese Zodiac.  Possibly this chap was one of a set of twelve, or may have been the property of a person born in the 'Year of the Pig'.  I love his fat cheeks and devil-may-care attitude.


Ready  for a cuppa?

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