Jian Kiln is one of the famous ancient kilns in China, located in the Jianyang District, Nanping City, Fujian Province. It is a perfect place where the Jianzhan Tenmoku tea caps, sets, and pots are made. There are many advantages of Jianyang being the ideal place. Firstly, you can learn about Jianyang, especially the unique local environment, through the following video.
1.Why Jianzhan tenmoku tea cups are unique? -The magic of the iron element.
There is a lot of iron in the cup, and the color of iron is not the same at different temperatures. For example, pure iron is silver-white, but it will appear grayish and blackish under the light, and the iron oxide is red after heating. But ferric oxide is black, while ferrous and ferric ions are green and yellow. Therefore, the colors of Jianzhan are diverse and unique. At the same time, the cup of Jianzhan Tenmoku is thick and heavy, and there are many tiny pores in the cup, which is conducive to the heat preservation of the tea and can also soften the water.
2.Tenmoku glaze recipe - The raw materials in Jianyang
The making of Tenmoku tea cups requires soil with high iron content, which can form a crystalline cup base and glaze. The iron content of the local soil in Jianyang is as high as 8%, which is an ideal raw material for making Jianzhan. The glaze of Jianzhan is a single-color glaze made of natural iron-containing soil and plant ash after crushing and beating. The glaze soil is the local soil of Jianyang, the most critical colorant of Jianzhan, and the most important factor for various patterns. Another material is plant ash. The mixing ratio of glaze soil, plant ash, and water become the key to glaze matching success. People have tried many times to get the appropriate ratio. Many famous artisans have unique recipes to make a different kind of Jianzhan.
3.Why is Jianyang the primary origin of Jianzhan? - Heritage of history
Since the Song Dynasty, the reputation of Jian tea has become famous in China.
After the custom of “Tea fighting” became prosperous, Jianyao began to make the famous black glaze cups and fired celadon and blue-white porcelain. Because a Japanese monk practiced in the Tenmoku Mountain Temple, when he turned back to Japan, he brought a few Jianzhan. Because it is from Tenmoku mountain, so Japanese called Jianzhan as Tenmoku tea cup. But the cups are all made in Jianyang, not Tenmoku mountain. After the end of the Yuan Dynasty, the firing of the kilns in the Jianyang area was suspended due to the war, and its craftsmanship was lost. It was not until modern times that the kilns were restored to firing with the help of Chinese and Japanese experts.
4.Why Jianyang be choosed. - the geographical factor.
We know the importance of the iron element for making Jianzhan. Therefore, Jianyang, located in Fujian Province, China, has become the best place of origin for Jianzhan. It has the following advantages.
1) The most critical factor is that the clay in Jianyang has high iron content, which is perfect for making Jian Zhan Tenmoku Teacups.
2) There is enough fuel to meet the energy consumption of large-scale porcelain firing, and the forest coverage rate of Jianyang has reached 75%, so Jianyao has ample fuel.
3) There is a suitable geographical environment. Jianyang is located in the hilly terrain of southern China, the hills here with a gentle slope, so it is ideal for building a large-scale Jian kiln.
4) The transportation is convenient. The primary means of transportation in ancient China was water transport. There are many rivers in Jianyang, and water transportation has been developed, which is suitable for transporting products. And in modern, it mainly relies on roads.
5. How did China's Jianzhan become Japan's national treasure, Tenmoku ware?
According to historical records, during the Kamakura period in Japan (late 12th to 14th century), Japanese monks who studied at the Tenmoku Mountain Buddhist Temple in Zhejiang Province, China, brought back tea bowls from Tenmoku Mountain. Japanese called this type of ware Tenmoku cup. After the Ming Dynasty in China, due to the cessation of firing in Jian kilns, the surviving Jianzhan became a top-notch item and a sacred national treasure in Japan. Currently, there are only fourteen ceramics designated as “national treasures” in Japan; eight of them come from China, and three of the eight are Tenmoku tea cups.
6. Tenmoku made by master of Japanese
“长江惣吉,” a Japanese leading ceramic artist, the ninth generation leader of SETOYAKI, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, and a leader in the Japanese Tenmoku production industry. SETOYAKI benefits from the local pottery and kaolin, as well as the favorable ceramic resources of the places and people, and has a long history of making Tenmoku glaze handicrafts. In 1996, “长江惣吉” embarked on the path of pursuing the Yohen Tenmoku cup and came to Jianyang, Fujian, the birthplace of the Tenmoku cup, bringing back some pottery pieces. Over the next 30 years, he traveled back and forth to China nearly 30 times and brought back about 80 tons of mud from Jianyang to study the making of Jianzhan. It is estimated that these mud materials can be used for 100 years of experimental production.
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