Matcha bowl / Kuroraku "Keinyu Oozora" Shôraku

Please note, this item is a unique piece.

Black Raku-yaki matcha bowl marked with buckets made by Shôraku Sasaki III (1944-) from the Shôraku kiln in Kyoto.

This tea bowl is a reproduction of "Oozora," a representative example of a tea bowl made by Keinyu, Kichizaemon XI (1817-1902) of the Raku family. Raku pottery originated during the Tensho period (late 16th century), when Chojiro I of the Raku family produced tea bowls based on the Wabi philosophy of Sen no Rikyu, the great master of the tea ceremony. Raku pottery is characterized by the production techniques of "tezukune" (hand-molding) and low-temperature firing (750°C – 1200°C) in a small kiln. Tezukune is a pottery-making method that involves kneading the clay by hand without using a potter's wheel, then shaping it by scraping with a spatula.