A Pair of Old Japanese Teacups

Lawrence and his fiancee visited me two weeks ago, that was shortly before his moving out of Ohio. We first had a dinner together in a local Chinese restaurant called Panda Inn, which is one of my favorite. We then had several teas at my place, including that 17 year aged Dong ding oolong. I proudly showed out the two zisha teapots I newly bought. One is a Shuiping pot (水平壺, an imitation of the so called 文革壺 or Wen ge style); and the other the cute Wendan pot (文旦) presented in last post. Lawrence held them in hands and studies them for a while. His comments were possitive. We sat down and talked about the material, style, and about the saler of these pots.

The most exciting thing for a visit of teapal is of course his or her presents! Sometimes their mere precence is already the best reward, but this time I was truelly honored with two old Japanese teacups Lawrence brought me as gift!





The inside of the cups has a thin layer of clear and light greenish glaze with a fine crack appearance. The color is enhanced when tea poured into it. The outside is rough, slightly ribbed, but feels gentle and comfortable. At the base, you find a small seal (sort of blurred and unreadable to me).





Drinking tea out of these cups is an enjoyment. I quickly fall in love with them, and these days I have been sipping up a lot of Taiwanese High Mountain Oolongs with these two cups! Thanks, Lawrence.