How To Buy A Good Jianzhan Tenmoku Tea Cup

We all know that the Jianzhan tenmoku tea cup has many benefits when making tea. Jianzhan tea cup is also famous for its magic pattern. But how to choose a suitable Jianzhan tea cup? There are some tips for you.

1.Look at the place of origin

Jianzhan is named after it was produced in Jian kiln in Fujian. It uses local clay with high iron to make the cup. The base cup of Jianzhan is thick, and because of its high iron content, the sound when tapped is different from that of ordinary teacups, and the color is dark gray. Jianzhan has a large volume, high iron content, and good thermal conductivity. If possible, you can even test colling time (because of high iron content, the Jianzhan tenmoku cup can keep warm better than other cups). If made in other places, not in Jian kiln, Jianzhan does not have the features above, so you need to pay attention when purchasing.

2.Look at the firing method

The firing of Jianzhan needs a high temperature of 1300 degrees, and its wonderful pattern is formed in a high-temperature environment. At present, the firing of Jianzhan includes electric burning and wood burning. Electric burning is widely used today, and it uses electricity as energy. The wood-burning method has a long history. Usually, pine and miscellaneous wood are used as materials to heat up, but burning firewood will cause uneven heating in the kiln, so wood burning Jianzhan teacups may have cracks. So try to choose electric burning Jianzhan teacups(via asking the seller about the burning method or checking the defects of a cup; generally, wood-burning cups have a higher defect rate ).

3.Look at the flaws

The material for the Jianzhan cup is clay with high iron content and needs to be fired in a high-temperature environment, which leads to a high defective rate of Jianzhan.
Common defects include: deformation, sticking to the bottom, bulging, cracking, etc. The deformed teacup is not aesthetically pleasing, and its function is also not well. The issue of sticking to the bottom is caused by overglazing, which destroys the bottom of cups. Other matters like bulging and cracking also affect the usage of the product. It would be best if you avoided flaws When choosing a tenmoku cup.

4.Look at the glaze

The reason why Jianzhan is more and more popular is because of its gorgeous glaze. You can enjoy a visual feast while drinking tea, like a starry sky, jellyfish, etc. Therefore, The glaze is also very important when choosing Jianzhan.

1) Oil droplets

As the name implies, Oil droplets cups have a similar pattern to oil droplets. When choosing oil drop cups, you should choose products with clear speckles, evenly distributed spots, and rich layers of pattern.

2) Thermal change

Several or dozens of obsidian stripes are gathered together, and the stripes are different in size and shape. It is tough to make this type of cup, and the patterns of each cup are different, so choose your favorite.